Rule Book

A game by Philippe Thibaut

© 2019 Wisdom Owl

 INVASIONS – VOOLLUUMMEE 1 – 350-650 AD
Contents Foreword
I OVERVIEW OF PLAY....................................................................2 The Invasions series simulates 600 years of European, Middle-Eastern
II COMPONENTS ..............................................................................3 and North African history, from approximately 350 to 950 AD. The series
III GAME CONCEPTS ........................................................................3 is presented as two games: Invasions, Volume 1, covering the early
IV SEQUENCE OF PLAY ...................................................................5 period (up to 600 AD more or less, before the Arabs) and Invasions,
V SETUP, SCORING, WINNING .......................................................6 Volume 2, covering the later period (from the Arabs till the Normans).
VI STATUS OF NATIONS ..................................................................6 During this era, known as the Dark Ages, many different peoples
VII TRANSITION TO KINGDOM .........................................................8 invaded the European continent, each hoping to colonize territory or
VIII TRANSITION TO EMPIRE .............................................................8 conquer a realm, frequently replacing other already established peoples.
IX REINFORCEMENTS ......................................................................8 But the new conquerors would rarely maintain their new powers for long
X EVENTS .........................................................................................9 as other, newer peoples would invade them in turn. The game ends
XI RAIDS...........................................................................................10 around the time the historic great migrations ended.
XII PROVINCE & AREA CONTROL .................................................11 In GI, each player controls many different peoples. Each of them strives
XIII ADMINISTRATION ......................................................................11 to carve out a realm in the best possible location—historical objectives
XIV INCOME .......................................................................................12 assigned by the rules. Some will prevail and found strong kingdoms or
XV PURCHASES ...............................................................................14 prosperous empires, while others will vanish into the void of history.
XVI REVOLTS.....................................................................................14 To help ease you into the game, the rules are divided into two parts: the
XVII STACKING ...................................................................................15 main rules here that explain the principal gameplay mechanisms, and
XVIII MOVEMENT .................................................................................15 special rules for some peoples that are presented in their respective
XIX OPPONENT’S REACTION ..........................................................17 nation cards and player aids †.
XX COMBAT ......................................................................................18
XXI ADVANCED COMBAT ................................................................22 I OVERVIEW OF PLAY
XXII MILITARY CAMPAIGNS..............................................................25
XXIII FORTIFIED CITIES ......................................................................25 • Invasions (Volumes I & II) simulates the 350 to 925 AD time period,
XXIV SIEGES ........................................................................................25 during which various barbarian and civilized peoples were active in
XXV SEA MOVEMENT & WARFARE .................................................26 Europe and the Middle East.
XXVI ALLIANCES .................................................................................27 • Each player has a set of assigned peoples known hereafter as
XXVII CLIENTELE..................................................................................28 Nations. Nations score victory points (VPs, ) for their player,
XXVIII FOEDUS .......................................................................................28 mostly through the control of geographical objectives.
XXIX SUBMISSION (VASSALAGE) .....................................................29 • Most nations start off as Barbarians that invade the map, forcing
XXX DIPLOMACY ................................................................................31 their way in through sheer force of numbers.
XXXI RELIGION ....................................................................................32 • As they settle down in conquered territory, they eventually become
XXXII DRAMATIS PERSONAE .............................................................33
Civilized, first as Kingdoms and eventually, if large enough, as
Empires. Nothing is eternal, so Empires eventually collapse and the
XXXIII GAZETTEER ................................................................................33
cycle continues.
XXXIV GLOSSARY .................................................................................37
• Each nation has an individual Nation Card. Each card lists the
XXXV CREDITS ......................................................................................38
special rules that apply to that nation: its victory objectives,
CONTACT ..................................................................................................38 scheduled reinforcements, leaders, etc.
• A Time Table indicates, turn by turn, the nations entering play,
Barbarian reinforcements, and named leaders.

† Text in dark red refers to game components other than this booklet.
2 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl
II COMPONENTS III GAME CONCEPTS
Rule Book ×1 Appendices Book ×1 A. Die Rolls
• Special white and black battle dice are used to resolve
battles (→ XX.B).
o Note: The optional advanced combat rules (→ XXI) use two
normal six-sided dice, 2D6, instead (not supplied with the game).
• A ten-sided die, D10, is used for everything else (sieges, revolts,
etc.).
Player Aids ×12 Score Pad ×40 Nation Cards ×33
• When the rules call for a D2 check, roll a D10. The check is passed
if the roll is even (✓), it is failed if odd (✗).

Rounding!
In this game, all rounding is up.
A negative value is rounded towards zero.

B. Military Units
• There are two types of Military Units: Standard & Elite.
Special D6 Battle Dice ×20 D10 Event Dice ×2 • Each of these can be further distinguished as Heavy.
• Some nations have special units (Elephants, Horse-Archers,
Frankish Infantry, etc.) that usually combine some of these traits.
• Units may be available on, or from, a certain turn—for
×14 ×6
example, the unit counter turn icon shown here indicates
Cards ×108 this unit becomes available on turn 3.
Administration ×18 Diplomacy ×18 Event ×72 • Mercenaries are units of a nation that are under the control of
another (→ XXVII.B, XXVIII.C, XXIX.D).
Standard Units have only a front side. Infantry, cavalry, and archers
are the most commonplace standard units.
• Infantry ( ): This is the basic unit.
• Archers ( ): Archers of both sides shoot during each battle’s
opening archery round (→ XX.D), and fight normally afterwards.
Information Markers ×216 (Age, Treasury, Tribute, Calamity, etc.) • Cavalry ( ): May gain a Tactical Advantage during battle
Pillage In Decline Revolt Fortified City Capital
(→ XX.C).
• Horse Archers ( ): Mostly used by nomads, these are archers and
cavalry.
Counters ×540 in 4 Player Colours • Limites (singular Limes): Unmovable fortified units that stop
Unit Leader Limes Horde Fleet invasions at a border (→ XVIII.I).
• Fleets ( ): Used for naval warfare or transportation (→ XXV).
Elite Units (white diamond icon on the front side of their counter):
These include legions, noble cavalry, and guards.
Large 56×84 cm mounted mapboard of the Ancient World (→ Map key, p. 4).
• Elite units can only be used by Civilized nations (Kingdoms or
Empires), barring exceptions.
• Elite units present in a Barbarian nation’s force pool are treated as
standard units, ignoring the elite white diamond icon, until the nation
becomes Civilized.
• Elite units have two sides. When an elite unit is hit, it is flipped to its
reverse side, which displays a red diamond icon to indicate it is a
hit/damaged elite unit and is now treated as a standard unit (infantry
or fleet), no matter what it was previously. Elite amphibious ( ),
mountaineer ( ), and francisque-wielding ( ) units maintain
those attributes while damaged, as indicated by the icons on their flip
side.
• Imperial Guards (two white diamond icons ): count as two
elite units but are still damaged by a single hit. (Custos, Custodes in
Latin) The Palatine cavalry is made up of mounted imperial Guards.
Heavy Units ( ) can be standard or elite.
• When a side has the Heavy Advantage in battle, their opponent
suffers a penalty to its battle dice.
• Noble Cavalry ( ): These are heavy elite cavalry for
Kingdoms.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 3

 Amphibious Units ( ) ignore the river penalty during combat D. Barbarian Hordes
(→ XX.F) and the sea risk die roll during amphibious landings • Each Barbarian nation has a single special unit,
(→ XXV.E). the horde.
Mountaineer Units ( ) count double during a mountains ambush • It behaves as a sort of “mobile capital” for the
archery round (→ XX.D). Barbarian nation. When the Barbarian nation
transitions to a Kingdom (→ VII), the horde is
A Roman legion (left) is an elite flipped to its reverse side, which depicts the
heavy infantry unit. capital.
The Barbarian cavalry on the right is • Barbarians control an Area (→ XII.C) if they are the sole Barbarian
a heavy unit; it becomes elite when nation to have their horde there. Kingdom or Empire control of an
the Visigoths found a Kingdom. Area supercedes Barbarian control.
• A horde stands separate from other units, and does not stack with
C. Leaders
anything else, not even a Leader or an allied horde. It never counts
There are two types of Leaders: Intrinsic & Named. Neither can be against the stacking limit (→ XVII).
purchased—they are in play when the Time Table calls for them. • Barbarian reinforcements (→ IX) are placed in the same province as
Intrinsic national leaders represent unremarkable leaders; they are the horde.
unnamed and without any turn indication (i.e. available without special • If the nation is raiding (→ XI.C), the target province must be within
turn constraints). two provinces of the horde.
• A horde counts as a unit in defense only. It flees or retreats normally
• The initially Barbarian nations each have a Rex (Latin for King),
(→ XIX). It cannot be eliminated in battle, only submitted
which is only in play when there is no named leader.
(→ XXIX.B).
• The initial Kingdoms and Empires have military leaders (bearing a
• A horde moves like an infantry unit only during an invasion
general’s star ) with a relevant title such as Caesar or Satrap.
They are in play alongside their King or Emperor. (→ XVIII.H).
• Otherwise, a horde can only move by migration (→ XVIII.G).
Named leaders are historic emperors, kings, or generals that are in play
for up to two turns. The game includes a few fictitious, alternate-history
leaders, such as Majorianus II, Claudius III, and Antoninus. There are a
few instances where a nation has two kings, emperors, or generals in
play during the same turn.
Although not units themselves, Leaders have a number of attributes
that affect play:
→ Top Center:
• The turn(s) during which the leader is in play. Intrinsic leaders do not
have this attribute.
→ Left, top to bottom:
• Combat Bonus: Number of re-rolls
available during battle (→ XX.E), siege
(→ XXIV.C), and revolt subdual
(→ XVI.F). Bonus for interception and
flight (→ XIX), and sometimes for
transition to Kingdom (→ VII).
• Stacking Bonus: Number of extra units
that can stack with the leader (→ XVII.B).
→ Right, top to bottom:
• Administrative Bonus: Administration card draw bonus (→ XIII.C).
• Diplomatic Bonus: Diplomatic card draw bonus (→ XXX.A).
• Campaign Value: Number of times a leader can go on campaign
during his nation’s activation (→ XXII).
→ Bottom:
• Name, followed by an icon showing whether the leader is a general
, a (Barbarian or Civilized) king , or an emperor .
• Some leaders have a Mountains icon that indicates the leader
cannot be ambushed in mountain terrain.

4 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

E. The Map
IV SEQUENCE OF PLAY
• The map is divided into different land provinces and sea zones.
• Each province has a name, an income value, and a terrain type Invasions is played over a number of Turns as determined by the
(background colour). chosen Scenario. Each turn is broken down into four phases that are
• Provinces may contain extra information such as city sites, cities further broken down into steps and sub-steps. Players will activate
(some of which are ports), granaries ( ), or caravan sites their individual nations during some of these steps.
( ). Nation Activations begin with Barbarian nations, in order of decreasing
• Provinces may be separated by a river or ridge, or connected to age (breaking ties in order of increasing initiative on their Nation Cards),
other provinces over a strait. Some are insular (Gothlandia, then similarly with Kingdom nations, and finally Empire nations.
Balearica, Creta, etc.). Exceptions are noted.
• Sea zones have a name and, in some cases, a commerce value.
• Provinces are grouped into Areas such as Arabia, Hispania, or TURN SEQUENCE
Balticum. 1. Time Phase
• Areas have a name, a status (Barbarian or Civilized), a Kingdom
A. Status of Nations (VI)
income value, and, for Civilized areas, an Empire income value.
a. Barbarian nations age (VI.D) – In Age Track sequence.
F. Cities b. Kingdoms and then Empires age (VI.E) – as above.
• Control of a province goes hand in hand with control of any city c. Heresies age (VI.F)
therein. B. Reinforcements (IX) – In Nation Activations order (see Military
• A city site is a spot on the map where a new city Phase, below) †.
may be built as a result of an event or of the
C. Events (X)
foundation of a Kingdom. They also serve to
indicate the results of raids (→ XI). a. Event Cards (X.B) – In player order
(Romans > Huns > Persians > Goths).
• Cities can be fortified (→ XXIII) or non-fortified.
• For a province to be conquered, its city (if any) must also be b. Raids (X.C) – In Time Table sequence.
besieged successfully (→ XXIV). c. Caravans (X.D) ‡ – Simultaneous.
• Cities generate income (→ XIV.B) and can be looted after a D. Diplomacy (XXX) – Civilized nations, in order of increasing age,
successful siege (→ XXIV.D). Raids (→ XI.F) loot empty city sites starting with Kingdoms and then Empires.
(this represents the raiders pillaging the province’s countryside).
• Cities grow in size as a result of an event card or by absorbing a
2. Administration Phase (Kingdoms and Empires only) (XIII)
In Nation Activations order ‡
Barbarian horde transitioning to a young Kingdom.
• Cities with a port have their coast on the sea zone where the A. Administration Cards (XIII.C)
appears and are coastal cities. B. Income (XIV) (Barbarians: XIV.I Recovery from Pillage) †
G. Capitals C. Purchases (XV) †
• Each Civilized nation has a Capital marker D. Revolts Subdual (XVI.F)
(Capitolum), the nation’s capital. 3. Military Phase
• A capital generates bonus income.
A. Nation Activations – Barbarian nations first, then Kingdoms, and
• It is always fortified (its walls cannot be dismantled). finally Empires. In order of decreasing age, breaking ties in order of
• It is easier to intercept enemies entering a capital’s province. increasing Nation Card initiative.
• Its province is immune to revolt. a. Unit Stacks
• Its Area is immune to the Heresy calamity but not the Heresy event i. Movement (XVIII, XIX, XXV) – One stack at a time, in
(→ XXXI.C). player’s choice of sequence.
• Looting a capital generates extra Gold ( ). ii. Combat (XX) – In player’s choice of sequence.
• If a nation’s capital is conquered, it loses all of its allies, clients, and b. Campaigns (XXII) – In player’s choice of leader sequence
vassals. It may also lose any or all of its federates. A Kingdom i. Movement
whose capital is conquered submits (→ XXIX.C). ii. Combat
• A capital is redeployed on the turn following its conquest. Its bonus
B. End of Diplomacy
income is not collected on that turn.
H. Treasury Track 4. Scoring Phase (V) – Every 3rd Turn
Some nations may also score during their activation.
• Each nation places its Treasury (Thesaurum) marker here to track
accumulated income. This includes Barbarian nations. † May be done simultaneously if order does not matter.
• This marker’s position (spaces 0 to 20) indicates how much ‡ On turn 1, Caravans (1.C.c) and Administration (2) are skipped.
(Gold) the nation owns. It is moved up for gains (income) and down
for expenses (purchases and other costs).
• If the Treasury exceeds 20 accumulated , flip the marker to its
“+20” side. If it drops below 21, flip it back.
• The only allowed transfers of between nations are those specified
by the rules (tribute, mercenaries, diplomacy, etc.).

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 5

 B. Inactive Nations
V SETUP, SCORING, WINNING
• There are a number of inactive nations in the game, some Barbarian
A. Setting up (e.g. Aestii, Sklaves), some Kingdoms (e.g. Euskalduns, Armenians).
• The scenario used (in the basic game, the only one is 350 AD • They do not attack, they do not age, they do not track Treasuries.
Scenario I) indicates the nations in play. For each one: • They do not earn VPs for their controlling player by themselves,
o Place its Capital or Horde counter in the indicated province. having no Nation Card. Once they are turned into a client (→ XXVII),
o Deploy the listed units in the provinces, areas, or sea zones federate (→ XXVIII), or vassal (→ XXIX), they earn VPs for their
indicated, setting aside the remaining units to form the nation’s patron, federator, or suzerain as usual.
pool. • Their controlling player is merely in charge of their reactive
o Place its Treasury marker on the Treasury Track at the indicated movement (fleeing from combat → XIX.B), battle (as defenders),
amount. and reinforcements (→ XXVII.C).
o Place its Age marker on the Age Track’s 1 space unless
C. Raider Nations
indicated otherwise.
o If a client nation, place the indicated Tribute marker. • There are also a number of raider nations in the game, all Barbarians
• Place a fortification marker on each fortified city as printed on the (e.g. Berbers, Vikings).
map (or as specified by the scenario, if different). • Their units are held off-map, appearing only long enough to raid
• Deploy Heresy and other Calamity markers as indicated, if any. (→ XI) a rural Civilized province during the Time Phase’s Events
• Shuffle the Administration, Diplomacy, and Event cards separately step as directed by the Time Table, earning VPs and loot in the
and put each deck face-down within reach. process.
• Finally, put the Turn marker on space 1 of the Turn Track and begin • After a particularly successful raid, their units may settle down in
play with Time Phase step C, Events. their target province. The raider nation then becomes inactive.
• Some raider nations are destined to become normal active nations
B. Scoring Victory Points later on (e.g. Angles, Saxons). Only these get to track Treasuries
• Nations score victory points (VPs) for their player, mostly through (from the outset) and age (once established on the map).
the (direct or indirect) control of geographical objectives (provinces
D. Barbarian Nations Age
and areas). Vassalage (→ XXIX) affects this score.
• VPs for province and area control (→ XII) are scored at the end of • A Barbarian nation may never be older than space 7 or younger than
turns 3, 6, 9 and the game’s last turn (11 or 12) as indicated by the space 1 on the Barbarian Age Track.
VP Icon on the Turn Track. (Check individual Scenarios for any • A Barbarian nation automatically ages one space during the Time
changes.) Phase’s Status of Nations step, unless its age is already at 7.
• Some nations may score VPs for other reasons (→ Nation Cards). • A Barbarian nation may transition to a Kingdom (→ VII) voluntarily
starting at age 3. It may suffer a forced transition starting at age 5.
• Other sources of VPs are raids (→ XI), diplomatic marriages
• A Barbarian nation that ages from the last space for any reason
(→ XXX.D), conversion to Catholicism (→ XXXI.B), and Foedus
immediately checks for transition to a Kingdom.
(→ XXVIII.E).
E. Civilized Nations Age
C. Winning the Game
• A Civilized nation may never be older than space 12 or younger than
• The player with the most victory points at the end of space 1 on the Civilized Age Track.
the game wins (adding together the VPs of all nations
• A Kingdom or Empire nation automatically ages one space during
under their control).
the Time Phase’s Status of Nations step.
• The game ends on turn 11 if Islam is created, on turn 12 otherwise • A Kingdom or Empire may also age depending on the
(→ Time Table). Administration card played later during that turn (by –1 to
• If players are tied in Victory Points, score the turn a second time. If +2 spaces), because of certain calamities or events, or if it goes
still tied, the tie is broken by player number order: bankrupt (→ XIV.J).
Romans > Huns > Persians > Goths • A Kingdom may transition to an Empire (→ VIII) when it reaches or
exceeds a certain size.
VI STATUS OF NATIONS • An eligible Kingdom is checked for transition to Empire every time its
age marker advances. If it advances multiple spaces in one go,
A. Overview
check only once.
• A nation’s status is one of Barbarian, Kingdom, or Empire. • Civilized nations can also be In Decline, hastening
• Kingdom and Empire are Civilized. their transition to the next stage (empire or collapse).
• When each nation enters plays, it places its Age The In Decline marker (Declinatio) has two sides:
Marker (Aevum) on one of the two Age Tracks. Each single (–5 ) and doubled (–10 ).
turn, a nation’s marker may move forward on its track. • If a Civilized nation attempts to age from space 12 for any reason,
• One Age Track is for Barbarian nations; the other is for Civilized increase its level of Decline instead.
nations. • If a nation rejuvenates for any reason while In Decline, its Age
• The Barbarian track has 7 spaces. remains unchanged. Instead, decrease its level of Decline.
• The Civilized track has 12 spaces grouped into three sections: • To decrease the level of Decline, flip a double level In Decline
o Young: spaces 1 to 4 marker to its single level side or remove a single level one.
o Mature: spaces 5 to 8 • To increase the level of Decline (because of Age, Bankruptcy,
o Old: spaces 9 to 12 Calamity, or Event), add a single level In Decline marker if there is
• Each new Barbarian nation enters play on space 1 of the Barbarian none or flip a single level one to its double level side.
Age Track. New Civilized nations enter play on space 1 of the
Civilized Age Track.

6 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

• If instructed to increase the level of Decline and an In Decline marker
is already on its doubled side, the marker is unchanged. Instead, a
Kingdom immediately checks for transition to Empire whereas an
Empire applies the marker’s expense to its Treasury—possibly
triggering bankruptcy.
F. Heresies Age
• All heresies in play age:
o First, remove all Heresy – markers.
o Second, flip all Heresy + markers to their Heresy – side.
J. Kingdoms
G. Nations Activation Order
• Most Civilized nations are Kingdoms.
• Barbarian nations activate first during the Military Phase, followed
• Kingdoms always activate after Barbarians.
by Kingdoms and then by Empires.
• A Kingdom has a capital (on the flip side of the Barbarian horde
• Within the same status type, the oldest nation activates first.
counter), and must be administered every turn (purchases replace
• If age and status are equal, use the initiative number listed on the reinforcements).
Nation Cards (lower number activates first).
• A Kingdom receives income each turn to run its administration.
H. Barbarians • A Kingdom must pay for maintenance of its units (1 per unit).
• Barbarians are quick to play as there is no administration, no • A Kingdom must play an Administration card each turn. This has
purchase or maintenance of units, and no provincial or city income. various effects such as the administrative cost for the Kingdom (for
• They are immune to revolts and to heresies (as long as they remain the current turn), the calamities suffered, and additional aging.
Pagans or Arians). • An Administration card could also prevent the Kingdom from having
• Barbarians can gain through tribute or pillage (→ XIV.C). Their the use of its leader for a turn (i.e. the leader could be forbidden from
leaders may conquer non-fortified cities by sheer terror (→ XXIV.B). moving actively, although present on the map).
• On the turn they appear, Barbarians usually benefit from an • A Kingdom must purchase its units and suffer the effects of any
calamities received.
Invasion (→ XVIII.H), which boosts them significantly.
• Barbarians have different kinds of units; however, their elite units are K. Empires
considered as standard (i.e. single-sided, ignoring the white • Finally, there are Empires.
diamond) until they transition to Kingdom. • Empires always activate after Kingdoms.
• Barbarians receive reinforcements each turn according to the Time • An Empire is played more or less like a Kingdom except for its
Table. Each turn they either receive a named leader or replace a lost administration, which is a bit more delicate.
intrinsic one. They also have a horde, separate from their other units, • An Empire has military superiority over Barbarian nations. It also
which cannot be eliminated, only submitted (→ XXIX.B). benefits from an Imperial Capital bringing in more income.
• After a few turns, each Barbarian nation will eventually become • An Empire collects less than a Kingdom, but on the other hand it
Civilized and found a Kingdom. It is advisable to find a suitable pays no maintenance.
location, preferably in a Civilized Area (i.e. regions with cities that are • At the start of the game, Rome and Byzantium are united and
located within the Roman Empire at the beginning). represent the Roman Empire. They will split into separate entities on
I. Nomads turn 3 (395 AD).
• The Nomad ( ) is a special type of Barbarian. Most originate in • The Hun nomads may transition directly to an Empire—or they could
collapse instead.
Central Asia. Alans, Avars, Hephthalites, Huns, Khazars, and
Kushans are Nomads. • The Persians may become an Empire if they expand into the East.
• Nomads can choose their reinforcements without constraints. • An Empire can collapse (→ XIV.K) if it reaches age 9 or older and
• They are the only nations (except for the Ostrogoths on turn 1) that suffers bankruptcy (→ XIV.J).
can enter Scythia.
• They may cross a strait normally but may never use naval transport
(→ XXV.D). This restriction does not apply to mercenaries lent to
other nations (→ XXVII.B, XXVIII.C, XXIX.D) nor to auxiliaries
(→ XV.B).
• They have a battle advantage in Steppe terrain (→ XX.G) but are at
a disadvantage when besieging (→ XXIV.C).
• They may more easily submit other Barbarian nations in Barbarian
Areas and pick the units recovered by their new vassal in the
process (→ XXIX.B).
• They have control over their vassal-supplied mercenaries
(→ XXIX.D) but their vassals are more likely to rebel (→ XXIX.G).

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 7

VII TRANSITION TO KINGDOM VIII TRANSITION TO EMPIRE
A. Overview A. Overview
• Sooner or later, a Barbarian nation will become Civilized and make • A Kingdom may become an Empire once it reaches a certain size.
a transition to Kingdom. Its age is irrelevant.
• This transition can either be voluntary or forced, according to the
B. Forced Transition
situation.
• The Huns may not transition voluntarily to Kingdom. When Attila • Once a Kingdom controls at least 3 Areas (counting Barbarian Areas
dies, they either disappear entirely or immediately become an as ½ Areas—do not round up), it must make a die roll check for
Empire (→ Huns: E Player Aid). transition to Empire during the Time Phase’s Status of Nations step.
• Exception: Do not make a die roll check on the turn the Kingdom is
B. Voluntary Transition created, even if it satisfies the Area count condition.
• Once a Barbarian nation reaches age 3, its player may
→ Die Roll Check for Transition to Empire
announce the transition to Kingdom at the start of a
turn, in the Time Phase’s Status of Nations step. • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
• No die roll check is required, only the announcement. o +1 for a leader with a combat bonus ≥ 2
o +1 if In Decline (single side)
C. Forced Transition
o +2 if In Decline (doubled side)
• Once a Barbarian nation reaches age 5, its player must o +2 for each Civilized Area controlled beyond the first three
make a die roll check for transition to Kingdom unless a o +1 for each Barbarian Area controlled
voluntary transition has been announced. o +3 if Roma or Constantinopolis are controlled
• This die roll check is made at the start of the turn, in the o +1 for each client → Persian Player Aid: B
Time Phase’s Status of Nations step. • Result < 8: The transition fails and the nation remains a Kingdom.
→ Die Roll Check for Transition to Kingdom • Result ≥ 8: The nation immediately becomes an Empire.

• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers: C. The Young Empire

o –1 for every 10 in the nation’s Treasury • The nation’s Age marker is flipped (to its eagle side) and reset to
o +2 if the nation’s horde is in a Barbarian Area space 1 of the Civilized Age Track (exception: → Persians Player
• Result > nation’s age: The transition fails and the nation remains Aid: B). Any In Decline marker present is removed (even if flipped to
Barbarian for this turn. its doubled side).
• Result ≤ nation’s age: The nation immediately becomes a Kingdom. • The young Empire immediately receives a bonus of 20 for its
Treasury.
D. The Young Kingdom
o On the Status of Nations step of the next turn, it receives another
• The nation’s Age marker is set on space 1 of the Civilized Age Track. bonus of 10 . There are no bonuses on the following turns.
• The young Kingdom immediately receives a bonus of 20 for its
Treasury. IX REINFORCEMENTS
o On the Status of Nations step of the next turn, it receives another
bonus of 10 —unless it becomes an Empire on that turn, a A. Overview
rare occurrence. There are no bonuses on the following turns. • During the Time Phase’s Reinforcements step, nations receive units
• If there is an empty city site in a province it controls (→ XII.B), found (at no cost) and leaders according to instructions on the Time Table
a Level 1 city there. Otherwise grow a Level 1 city into a Level 2 or, or on their Nation Card.
if there is no other choice, grow a Level 2 into a Level 3. If all
controlled city sites are already level 3, too bad—the growth is lost. B. Displacements
• The horde is then flipped to its capital side. It is assigned • When the Time Table calls for a new nation to arrive in an occupied
permanently to an existing city anywhere within the controlled province, the occupiers must evacuate immediately.
provinces. The city could be the newly-founded one. • The displaced units must move towards adjacent empty or friendly
• If the young Kingdom has no city at all, the horde counter remains provinces, if possible in the direction of their horde or capital.
unflipped until a city site or city comes under its control, at which time Stacking limits must be respected.
the city growth and capital founding described above occurs. The o If displacement is not possible for some (but not all) of the
Kingdom will have no capital until then, although its horde counter displaced units (because of stacking limits), they are removed
will be treated as a capital in all other respects (immunity to revolt from play.
and the Heresy calamity, etc.). o If displacement is not possible for any unit because they are
• The Kingdom may remain Pagan or become Arian or Christian surrounded, the displaced nation must pick its strongest
(→ XXXI). neighbour (by total number of units) and seek refuge in one of its
• The nation is now civilized and thus no longer receives free units provinces (removing from play any excess units). It immediately
from the Time Table as reinforcements. submits to its new suzerain, who must evacuate in turn as usual
(→ XXIX).
o If displaced from an island, naval transport by friendly fleets
allows falling back across a sea zone (→ XXV.D). Otherwise the
displaced units are removed from play.
• A horde in the arrival province is displaced. A capital is removed and
can be founded again just as if the nation were transitioning to
Kingdom (→ VII.D). The nation’s Age and Treasury do not change.
• Displacements may not be intercepted nor trigger flight (→ XIX).
8 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl
C. Named and Intrinsic Leaders
• Intrinsic leaders, as individuals, last only one turn. As one dies (of
natural causes), a new one arises. To reflect this, intrinsic leaders
are freely redeployed to any of the nation’s provinces during
Reinforcements.
• A new named leader may appear as a reinforcement.
• It may be placed in any of its nation’s provinces.
o The intrinsic leader can never be in play at the same time as a
named leader. It is moved to the Turn Track from whence it
comes as a reinforcement on the next turn.
o Note: The military leader of an Empire (e.g. Rome’s Caesar) is
always allowed even if a named leader is present. X EVENTS
• Named leaders that appeared on the previous turn are removed
during Reinforcements unless the Time Table calls for a second turn. A. Overview
D. Barbarian Units • In this step of the Time Phase, there are three sub-steps: event
cards are drawn (some of which trigger immediate events), raids are
• Each Barbarian nation receives reinforcements as indicated on the
carried out by some Barbarians, and the income from caravans is
Time Table unless it is a vassal (→ XXIX.F).
determined.
• These reinforcements are always placed in the
same province as the one holding the horde (next B. Event Cards
to it). Stacking limits are ignored at this point, • In player number order, each player draws one event card
unlike Civilized nations—they will be checked later, (regardless of how many nations they control).
during the Military Phase. • Some of the pillage markers obtained as a result of raids and sieges
• If the Time Table no longer shows any reinforcements, a Barbarian double as event “cards”.
nation will receive by default one unit as reinforcement each turn. • Event cards are either public (18 cards) or private (54 cards).
• If the Time Table calls for an unavailable unit type, substitute an • A public event card has a red-coloured
infantry with as few attributes as possible. back while private event cards have a
• When the Time Table merely specifies a number of “units”, at least brown-coloured one. Public events
half of those must be infantries (if available in the counter pool). must be played immediately when
The types of the rest are freely chosen by the player. drawn, while private events are kept by
• Within a type, the player draws half at random from the available the player and used later.
pool and picks the rest. • An event card’s target is not necessarily a nation, stack, or unit
• Nomads choose each of their reinforcements—no random controlled by the card player. For instance, an event can meddle with
draws. the outcome of a battle that does not involve any of the card player’s
• No units can ever be purchased using a Barbarian nation’s Treasury. nations.
E. Kingdoms and Empires • An event may not target an inactive nation (independent minor
Kingdoms, Slavic Barbarians, settled raiders) except in battle.
• Civilized nations rarely if ever receive scheduled unit reinforcements; • Played event cards are put in the event discard pile. The Pool public
they instead purchase new units (or repair damaged ones) during the event is the only time the discards are shuffled back into the event
Administration Phase’s Purchases step. Some exceptions exist, and deck.
are indicated on the Player Aids and Nation Cards.
• Inactive independent minor Kingdoms each receive one unit as C. Raids
reinforcement if eligible (→ XXVII.C). • Some Barbarians called raiders stage Raids, as listed
on the Time Table.
F. Federates and Vassals
• Each of these nations has a pool of at least 2 units to raid with.
• If a federate mercenary (→ XXVIII.C) is eliminated, a new one is lent • They do not have initiative numbers on their Nation Cards as they do
to the federator (deployed on the map) during the federator’s not get to act during the Military Phase.
Reinforcements. • The raiding process is explained in detail in the next section (→ XI).
• If a nomadic suzerain’s vassal mercenary (→ XXIX.D) is eliminated,
a new one is drafted by the suzerain during its Reinforcements. This
is the only case where an eliminated vassal mercenary must be
replaced.
G. Disappearing Nations
• If a nation has disappeared (has no units of its own on the map),
during its Reinforcements one of its units controlled by another
nation as an auxiliary (‘B’ unit → XV.B) or mercenary (→ XXVII.B,
XXVIII.C, XXIX.D) is removed from each such nation (their choice).

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 9

D. Caravans D. Raid Process
• Aegyptus, Rhagae, Siraces, and Tripolitania are the Caravan • The raid targets a single province, which must be a Civilized enemy
provinces. province with an empty city site (yellow square on the map). Place
• A Caravan province normally provides an income of the Raid marker (Incursio) on the target province until the raid is
1 (in addition to the province’s own income) to its resolved.
Civilized controlling nation. • The target province must either be adjacent to the raiders’ starting
• Each turn, an exceptional caravan is randomly location, or there may be a single intervening province (this is called
determined using a D10 roll on the Caravan Table ‘raiding in depth’).
shown below (and also on the map). The designated • A province with a Limes or fortified city cannot be crossed.
province receives an income of 5 instead of 1 . • Raiders that pass through a garrisoned province to reach their
o 1–2 Aegyptus 3–7 Rhagae 8–9 Siraces 0 Tripolitania target suffer a penalty.
• The Caravan event card increases the caravan incomes to 10 for • Amphibious raiders ( ) can cross one sea zone to reach their target
the exceptional caravan and 5 for the others. province. If Civilized fleets are in the crossed sea zone, the raiders
• A Barbarian nation that controls a Caravan province gets to loot it if suffer a penalty.
it passes a D2 check. Draw a pillage marker. • Raids may not be intercepted (→ XIX.A).
o If the Caravan is exceptional, looting it is automatically
successful. E. Raid Outcome
o If the Caravan event is in force, the Barbarian nation draws two • Roll a D10, with the following modifiers:
pillage markers instead of one. o –1 per Civilized unit present in the target province and in any
o See XXIV.D to resolve event and calamity pillage markers. province or sea zone passed through when raiding in depth
o +1 previous raid placed the Raid – marker
o +2 previous raid placed the Raid + marker
→ Result
o [≤4] failure One raiding unit is lost permanently
o [5–6] Raid – Gain 1 and 1 VP, place the Raid –
marker
o [7–10] Raid + Draw a pillage marker, gain 3 VP, place the
Raid + marker
o [11–12] Raid + As [7–10] above and the raiding unit(s)
remain in the target province
• A Raid marker that isn’t renewed is removed from the map.
• A Raid + eliminates any Limes present.
XI RAIDS F. Pillage Marker
• A pillage marker (→ XXIV.D) is drawn randomly and resolved.
A. Overview
• As long as a pillage marker remains face-down on the city site, its
• Raids aim to loot a province instead of conquering it. province cannot be raided again.
• Raider nations raid during the Time Phase’s Events • At the end of the Administration Phase’s Income step of each
step, Raids sub-step, when called for by the Time Civilized nation, up to two pillage markers are removed from each
Table. controlled Area. Thus, looted provinces may recover more slowly
• Other Barbarian nations can choose to raid during their military than looted cities do.
activation.
G. Settled Raiders
B. Raider Nations • Raiders that have elected to settle (remain in place after a raid) must
• The raid issues from the province indicated on their Nation Card. resolve an immediate battle (→ XX) if there are enemy units in the
When the card specifies an Area, the raiders come from a province province.
of the player’s choice within that Area. • A raider nation that has settled down becomes inactive (→ VI.B). It
• Two units conduct each raid. If the nation has a pool of more than 2 may become active again if indicated by the Time Table.
units (e.g. the Picts), the raiding units are picked at random.
• Raider nations have no units on the map until they settle down Example: Angles that raid on turn 3 could settle down and become
inactive. This means they would not raid on turn 4. On turn 5, their
(→ XI.G); their raider units can be understood as coming from the
invasion would make them active again.
wilderness of their starting location.
• Raider nations do not activate during the Military Phase. Some
raider nations become normal active nations as indicated by the
Time Table.
C. Barbarian Nations
• A Barbarian nation may raid during its activation, unless it is under
Foedus (→ XXVIII) or vassalage (→ XXIX).
• Two units must be assigned to the Raid (if possible). The raid
issues from the province where their horde is located, even though
the designated units may be located elsewhere.
• When raiding, the only other action the nation may perform is to
move its units between its controlled provinces, before the raid.
10 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl
 D. Friendliness, Neutrality, and Hostility
XII PROVINCE & AREA CONTROL
• Friendliness, neutrality, and hostility are distinct from control and play
A. Overview a role during the Military Phase.
• Provinces are grouped into Areas (e.g. Italia, Hispania, Graecia, • Friendly nations can stack together. Neutral nations allow free
passage through their territory but won’t stack together. Only hostile
etc.). On the map (→ III.E), island provinces indicate the Area to
nations may attack each other.
which they belong.
• Nations are mutually friendly if they are allies (→ XXVI) or if one is
• A Barbarian Area is indicated by an axe icon before its name on
a federate (→ XXVIII) of the other or of an ally. Federates of a nation
the map. A Civilized Area is indicated by a Greek column icon . and its allies are also mutually friendly.
• Control of provinces and Areas yields victory points (VPs) and • Nations are mutually neutral if one is a client (→ XXVII) or vassal
determines most of the income of Kingdoms and Empires. (→ XXIX) of the other or of one of its allies. Vassals and clients of a
• A nation controls the provinces and Areas controlled by its vassals nation and its allies are also mutually neutral.
(→ XXIX.E). A federator controls the Foedus provinces of its • Within a Barbarian Area, unallied Barbarian nations and their
federates (→ XXVIII.D), but not any other provinces these may vassals are mutually neutral by default. When one activates, the
control by themselves (a province garrisoned by federator and others may declare they are hostile. This lasts for the entire turn.
federate units is deemed controlled by the federator). Control may be • All other nations are mutually hostile.
shared between allies (→ XXVI). • A city is friendly if its province is friendly.
B. Control of a Province • A province is friendly to a nation’s units:
o if it is controlled by the nation or a friendly nation; or
• A nation controls a province where it has a sufficient number of
o if it is occupied without opposition by the nation or a friendly
unopposed units.
nation—control is not required (as in the case of a province in an
o A single unit is enough to secure control of a Civilized province.
uncontrolled Barbarian Area).
o The threshold for control of a Barbarian province is higher: a
• A province is neutral to a nation’s units if it is controlled by a neutral
Barbarian nation will need two units or a unit and its horde,
nation or occupied without opposition by a neutral nation.
while a Civilized nation will need three units (some of which may
be a federate’s). • All other provinces are hostile. This includes provinces with
unresolved battles or sieges.
• A nation controls any empty provinces in Areas it controls. Thus,
Area control, as long as it is maintained, obviates the need for a • Exception: Provinces in revolt (→ XVI), although still controlled by
military presence in each of the Area’s provinces. their nation, are hostile to their units.
• In order to conquer an enemy province, any city in the province must
also be successfully besieged once the enemy army has fled or
retreated. If the city holds, the attacker must evacuate the province
at the end of the combat step (or at the end of a leader’s campaign
→ XXII), leaving the province empty and therefore uncontrolled
(unless the Area is controlled).
C. Control of an Area
• Barbarians, Kingdoms and Empires may simultaneously claim
control of an Area: the Empire claim overrides the Kingdom claim Nations in the green zone are mutually friendly; those in the yellow zone are
mutually neutral and are also neutral to those in the green zone.
which overrides the Barbarian claim.
• Allies combine their holdings to determine Area control. Each ally
XIII ADMINISTRATION
shares in the Area’s control.
• Barbarians control an Area (Barbarian or Civilized) if the only hordes (Skip on Turn 1: Administration has already been completed).
present are theirs, their allies’, or their vassals’.
• Barbarians control a Civilized Area if they control the majority of its A. Barbarians
provinces. • The only administration that Barbarian nations accomplish is the
• Kingdoms control an Area if they control the majority of its provinces. Recovery from Pillage of the Income step (→ XIV.I).
• Empires control an Area if they control the majority of its cities. Note • A Barbarian nation collects no income.
that an Empire cannot control an Area that is devoid of cities. An • However, Barbarians may raid provinces, loot cities,
Empire has total control of an Area if it owns all of the Area’s cities or receive tribute from another nation.
and there are no hostile provinces within the Area. • These activites provide (that can later be used when the
→ Area Control Effects Barbarian nation becomes a Kingdom).

• Each empty province inside the Area is automatically controlled. B. Kingdoms and Empires
• For an empire, control of an Area generates income. Total control • Only the Civilized nations (Kingdoms and Empires) need
improves this income. administration.
• During the Administration Phase’s Administration Cards step, each
Civilized nation draws a number of Administration Cards, and then
pays for and plays one.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 11

C. Administration Cards (18) → Duration
• There are three Administration card types: Passive (7 cards), • Some cards may last more than one turn. The duration is
Military (7 cards), and Reform (4 cards). indicated next to an hourglass icon. (None use this
→ Administrative Cost symbol in Invasions Vol. 1)

• Each card has a cost indicated on its back. There is a price for → Gold
Kingdoms ( ) and a price for Empires ( ). • Some cards provide or cost Gold. The amount indicated
• The cost is unrelated to the size or age of the Kingdom or Empire. beside the is added or removed from the Treasury.
→ Calamity
• A Civilized nation may receive one of 12 calamities,
mostly harmful! (→ Calamities Player Aid)
→ Leaders
→ Named Leaders • If the card shows the leader head with a ‘✓’ for ‘Yes’,
then the nation’s leaders may act normally during the
• Some of the named leaders have an administration bonus on their turn.
counter (top right) that allows the nation to initially draw more cards. • If the card shows the leader head with a ‘✗’ for ‘No’, the
→ Minimum of Two Types leader(s) (emperor or king plus any unnamed extra
leader) must remain inactive in the capital during the
• If necessary, a nation draws additional cards until it has a choice turn. Named non-ruler leaders (such as Roman
between at least two types of cards. generals) are always active.
D. Administration Procedure • Important: An inactive leader may still intercept or flee during other
nations’ activations (→ XIX).
• In nation activations order, skipping Barbarian nations:
o The nation draws two Administration cards plus as many as
their leader’s administration bonus, all face-down.
o If the cards are all of the same type, the nation draws additional
cards until a second type is drawn.
o The nation chooses one set of cards (Passive, Military, or
Reform). If the nation can’t afford either type, the cheaper must
be chosen. This triggers bankruptcy (→ XIV.J) at the end of the
Income step.
o The nation pays the chosen card type cost (or empties its
Treasury in case of bankruptcy).
o If the chosen set includes more than one card, the nation
examines their faces and chooses one. XIV INCOME
o The nation resolves the card, applying its effects immediately.
o All cards drawn are shuffled back into the deck for the next A. Treasury Limits
nation (thus two nations could draw the same card). • A nation’s minimum Treasury is 0 . The maximum Treasury after
Example 1: At the start of the turn, the Visigoths founded a Kingdom in purchases is 40 . All stored in excess of 40 is lost!
Hispania. Therefore they must now administrate it. The controlling player B. Cities
draws two Administration cards: one Passive & one Military. They decide
• City income is based on city level:
to keep the Military (costing 10 ). They then reveal the chosen card’s
level 1 → 1 , level 2 → 2 , level 3 → 3
face and apply its effects (according to the Kingdom’s current age). Both
cards are then shuffled back into the deck. • A looted city brings only a half gold piece (½ ), whatever its level.
Example 2: Byzantium draws 2 Passive cards (of the same type). More → Capitals
cards must now be drawn, one at a time, until a second type comes up.
• The capital generates an extra 5 for a Kingdom,
The third card is Military. The controlling player now has 3 cards of two
10 for an Empire.
different types (two Passive and one Military). They decide to keep the
• The bonus income is not collected the turn a capital
2 Passive ones (costing 10 ). The player may now look at the faces of
the cards and choose the more favorable of the two to keep. They then is redeployed after being conquered (→ XIV.I).
apply its effects, and shuffle all 3 cards back into the deck. C. Barbarian Nations
Example 3: The Ostrogoths have founded a Kingdom in Italia. They have • Barbarian nations accumulate in their Treasury by receiving
a named leader, Flavius Theodericus, with an administration bonus of 2. tribute as a federate (→ XXVIII.E) or suzerain (→ XXIX.E), as a
Therefore the player draws 4 cards (2 base draw + 2 bonus draw for the result of most Diplomacy cards (→ XXX), or by hiring out as
leader). The draw yields one Passive, two Military and one Reform. The mercenaries (→ Huns: D Player Aid). But above all, they get as a
player chooses the Reform card, pays its 20 cost, looks at its face,
result of pillage (→ X.D, XI.F, XXIV.D, XXIX.B).
and applies its effects. Then all 4 cards are shuffled back into the deck.
• They do not get to spend any of it. Exception: if they become a
E. Resolving Administration Cards vassal, the tribute they pay comes out of their Treasury (→ XXIX.F).
• Each administration card has a certain number of icons on its front:

12 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

D. Kingdoms H. Net Income
• A Kingdom’s gross income is as follows: • A Kingdom must pay 1 maintenance for each of its units. A
cities + provinces + capital + commerce + caravans + tributes. leader costs nothing.
• Cities: All controlled cities (including the capital) in provinces not in • Empires pay no maintenance.
revolt. • The Gross Income minus the maintenance cost and other expenses
• Provinces: All controlled provinces not in revolt. is the Net Income (rounded up if necessary) that will be added to the
• The income of a province is printed on the map in red (e.g. 2 from Treasury. This may sometimes be a negative value (for instance,
Chaldea, 1 from Susiana, and only ½ from Hyrcania). when there are too many units).
• The big Dark Red Dot with a crown icon next to an I. Recovery from Pillage
Area’s name indicates the total income of all of its
provinces (e.g. Gallia Meridionalis 12 , Asia 8 ). • Once income has been collected, remove any face-down
This does not include cities! pillage markers from all of the nation’s cities. Redeploy a
• Kingdom Capital: +5 . conquered capital.
• In each controlled Area, remove up to 2 face-down
pillage markers from empty city sites. This is never
E. Empires
done more than once per Area within a single turn.
• An Empire’s gross income is as follows:
• Recovery from pillage is the only administration that Barbarian
cities + Areas + capital + commerce + caravans + tributes.
nations execute.
• Cities: All controlled cities (including the capital) in provinces not in
revolt. J. Bankruptcy
• Areas: Each controlled Area earns 1 ; total control earns an • A Civilized nation suffers bankruptcy if it couldn’t afford any of the
additional 1 . administration cards drawn during the preceding Administration
• The Black Square with an eagle icon next to a Cards step, or if it can’t pay all of its expenses.
Civilized Area’s name indicates the total control • When a Civilized nation goes bankrupt, it suffers 3 penalties:
income: 2 plus all of the cities (e.g. Graecia is worth o It ages by 2 spaces.
2 + 7 (3 cities) = 9 ). o It increases its Decline level.
• Imperial Capital: +10 . o It draws one Administration Card and applies the indicated
F. Other Income calamity (if any).
• In addition (only if bankrupted by expenses):
→ Commerce (Civilized nations only) o If the nation is a Kingdom, it loses all units it cannot pay for or
• Gain 1 income per sea zone where the nation controls at least half of its current units, whichever is less.
one coastal city not in revolt. • If triggered more than once during a turn, bankruptcy’s effects are
• If a nation controls all of the coastal cities of a sea zone applied just once.
and none are in revolt, it gains the Monopoly Value of K. Collapse
that sea zone as an additional income.
• If an Empire of age ≥ 9 suffers bankruptcy, a collapse die roll check
Note: At the beginning of the game, although Rome and Byzantium occurs immediately. Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
jointly control all cities coastal to M. Adriaticum and M. Siculum, neither o +? each age above 9 (+1 age 10, +2 age 11, +3 age 12)
gains the monopoly bonus because they are administered separately. o +1 if In Decline (single side)
o +2 if In Decline (doubled side)
→ Caravans
o +1 per calamity suffered this turn
• Income from caravans is gained earlier, during the Caravans sub- o +2 if the capital was conquered on the previous turn
step of the Time Phase (→ X.D). o –1 per Area controlled other than the capital’s Area
• Result < 9: The Empire stands.
→ Tributes • Result ≥ 9: The Empire collapses and ceases to exist.
• Gain 1 per vassal (even if the vassal has no ). o All of its units are removed from play. So are its leaders and its
• Gain up to 2 from each client. Capital, Age, and Treasury markers.
• Pay 1 to the suzerain. o Roman auxiliary units of Barbarian origin (‘B’) are exchanged for
• Pay 3 to each federate. infantries of their respective nations, as much as their remaining
• If unable to pay, the nation is bankrupt (→ XIV.J) and pools allow.
o Mercenaries are returned to their nations’ horde or capital
its federates may breach their Foedera (→ XXVIII.G).
provinces.
G. Revolts, Heresies, and Decline o Vassals and federates regain their freedom (though Foedera
• Provinces in revolt bring no income (to the owning Kingdom). may be transferred → Romans: K and Byzantines: G Player
• Cities in provinces in revolt bring no income. Aids).
• Provinces in revolt each add 1 to expenses, 3 if flipped to their
Revolt + side.
• Each Area under heresy adds 1 to expenses. In a Kingdom’s
case, this is true only if it straddles two Areas, only one of which is
under heresy—if both Areas are heretical, there is no added
expense.
• A single In Decline marker adds 5 to expenses, while a doubled
one adds 10 .
• If unable to pay its expenses, the nation is bankrupt (→ XIV.J).
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 13
 D. Select the Province in Revolt
XV PURCHASES
• A province with the capital or with a leader can’t be selected.
A. Barbarians • The presence of military units is irrelevant.
• No units can ever be purchased using a Barbarian nation’s Treasury. • The chooser places a Revolt – marker (Rebellio) in the revolting
province or flips an existing Revolt – marker to its Revolt + side.
B. Civilized Nations
E. Effects of Revolts
• Civilized nations buy units with their .
• Purchased reinforcements are placed freely within the provinces • A province in revolt becomes hostile although still “controlled” by its
controlled as long as stacking limits are respected. owning nation.
• The purchase prices are greater for Empires than for Kingdoms • The owner loses the income from the provinces in revolt as well as
that from the cities therein. A city in revolt is not eligible for
(→ Romans, Byzantines, Huns, Persians, or Goths Player Aids).
commerce (→ XIV.F).
• A heavy unit is slightly more expensive.
• The owner’s expenses are further increased by 1 or 3 for each
• The elite units (heavy or not) are the most expensive ones.
province in revolt (1 for Revolt –, 3 for Revolt +).
• When all unit counters are in play, a nation can no longer buy units. • If a revolting province is conquered by another nation, it remains in
At best it can save unspent in its Treasury. revolt. The new owner may attempt to subdue it on its next
• Empires may restore (unflip) up to two of their elite units at half of Administration Phase.
their purchase cost each turn during Purchases. • Revolts have no effect on caravans.
• The Romans (Rome and Byzantium) have
recruitment limitations for their national units: one F. Subduing a Revolt
per turn for turns 1–7, two per turn for turns 8+. • Most revolts occur during the Administration Phase as a result of a
However, they can freely recruit Barbarian calamity. Since the Revolts Subdual step occurs at the end of that
auxiliaries (‘B’) once those are available in their phase, an attempt to subdue the revolt can be made on the same
force pools. (See turn value on counter.) turn only if the nation already has a military presence. Otherwise,
o They also obtain mercenaries from diplomacy (→ XXX.H), their units will need to be sent in during the Military Phase in preparation
federates (→ XXVIII.C), clients (→ XXVII.B), and vassals for the next turn’s revolt subdual attempt.
(→ XXIX.D). • Revolt subdual is not mandatory.
• If In Decline, Rome and Byzantium must make a D2 check after the • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
Purchases step; if it is failed, a Usurper calamity occurs o +1 per unit present in the province (whatever the type)
(→ Calamities Player Aid). o –1 if the Area is under heresy (or if the capital’s Area is under
heresy and the revolting province is of the same religion
C. Units with a Date
but not heretical)
• Some units are not available before a specific turn or before some o –1 if the national religion is different from the Area’s
particular conditions are met (→ Time Table). • A leader provides as many re-rolls as its combat bonus.
Example: The Roman auxiliary shown above is only available from Turn • City walls are ignored; there is no siege or combat here.
3 onwards. • Result < 9: The revolt continues and the nation loses one unit of its
choice from among those present.
XVI REVOLTS o If the nation had just one unit, the leader is eliminated if he fails
a D2 check.
A. Overview • Result ≥ 9: The revolt is subdued and the province reverts to being
• Revolts occur as a result of a calamity or an event. controlled. Remove the Revolt marker.
• Barbarians are immune to Revolts as long as they remain Pagans or
Example: In 375 AD, Rome suffers two revolts. The D10 roll to designate
Arians.
the player who places the revolt is 2 → it's the Roman player! The Area
B. Designate a Chooser roll is 8 → Africa (a heretical Area). The Roman player chooses to place
• One player (possibly the affected player!) is selected at random to a Revolt – marker in the African province of Tripolitania. Rome loses
choose the province in revolt. Roll a D10: 1 from its income (losing total control of the Area) while its expenses
[1–3] Roman; [4–6] Persian; [7–8] Goth; [9–0] Hun increase by 1 . With the heresy, the total expense is now 2 .
For the second revolt, it’s the Persian player (D10 roll of 4) who will
C. Designate an Area (Empires only)
choose the province. The Area roll is a 5 → it's Gallia Septentrionalis.
• When a revolt occurs in an Empire (Roman or The Persian player cannot choose Treveria (as the leader Caesar is
otherwise), the Civilized Area to which the revolting there), so they select Neustria (Parisius). Rome loses 1 + 1 (total control
province belongs is randomly designated using the + city) = 2 from its income and adds 1 to its expenses.
table for the map half where the Empire’s capital is
In total, Rome loses 3 from its income and adds 3 to its expenses.
located (this table also appears on the Calamities
Player Aid): During the Military Phase of the turn, Rome moves its African garrison to
• Western Map: Tripolitania and Caesar's army to Neustria in an attempt to crush both
[1] Gallia M. [2] Illyria [3–4] Britannia revolts in the Administration Phase of next turn.
[5] Gallia S. [6] Italia [7–8] Africa [9–0] Hispania
• Eastern Map:
[1] Moesia [2] Asia [3] Cappadocia [4] Graecia
[5–6] Aegyptus [7–8] Oriens [9] Mesopotamia [0] Persis
• Reroll if the Empire controls no province in the rolled Area.

14 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

XVII STACKING XVIII MOVEMENT
Sea zone stacking limits are treated separately (→ XXV.A). This section concerns the movement of land units. Sea movement is
A. Overview treated separately (→ XXV).
• There is a stacking limit in each province. A. Overview
• Only units of the active nation (including mercenaries under its • A player can move as many units of the active nation as they want
control) and its federates and allies are taken into account (no matter during each of their nation's movement sub-steps (all, some, or
who the opponent is and what units they have in case of battle). none).
• During movement, an unlimited number of units may cross a neutral • Nations move their units one stack at a time and the composition of
or friendly province (→ XII.D). a stack can change during movement (→ XVIII.D). Moving one stack
• Stacking is checked: at a time is important for resolving interception attempts, overruns,
o When Barbarian reinforcements displace another nation naval transport, etc.
(→ IX.B). • A stack may move only if all of its units have movement allowance
o When placing Civilized purchases (→ XV.B). remaining (→ XVIII.B), and can be moved using only part of this
o During Passage in Force (→ XVIII.F). allowance at a time—in other words, a stack’s movement may be
o Each time a nation has completed a Unit Stacks Movement sub- interrupted to move other stacks before resuming.
step, before beginning the Combat sub-step. Twice during an • A stack moves from a province to an adjacent province with a
invasion (→ XVIII.H). common border or over a strait. It may not skip intermediary
o After each Movement sub-step of a leader campaign (→ XXII). provinces during the move.
o When an interception confrontation occurs, before combat • A stack may also use sea movement (naval transport or amphibious
(→ XIX.A). landing) to cross up to two sea zones adjacent to both its starting
o After fleeing (→ XIX.B). and ending provinces.
o After retreating (→ XX.L). • Exception: A stack including nomadic Barbarians may not use sea
o During Foedus redeployment (→ XXVIII.B). movement.
• The vassal of a nomadic suzerain must remain in the same Area as
o During mercenary redeployment (→ XXVII.B, XXVIII.C, XXIX.D).
its suzerain’s horde or in an adjacent Area.
B. Stacking Limits • Rivers, ridges, and other terrain have no effect on movement except
• The limit is 4 units in all terrain except mountain, where it is 3 units. for straits (→ XVIII.J). Rivers and ridges affect interception and
• The presence of a leader gives a bonus (bottom left value +X). flight, however (→ XIX).
• During an invasion, the invading nation receives a +1 stacking • During movement there are no stacking limits. Once a movement
bonus for all of its stacks during its entire activation (including any sub-step is completed, stacking must be checked, regardless of
campaigns). whether the provinces of arrival are friendly or not.
Example: A Barbarian leader with a stacking value of +2 may have B. Movement Allowance
6 units (4 for terrain +2 for leader) in most provinces or 5 units in • Each land unit has a movement allowance—a set number of
mountains (3 for terrain +2 for leader). During an invasion, these limits provinces it can move—measured in paces, that is renewed in full at
would increase to 7 and 6, respectively. the beginning of each Movement sub-step.
C. Special Cases For example, units of an invading nation (→ XVIII.H) get their movement
• A province is allowed to have a single Limes counter. allowances twice—at the beginning of each of the invasion’s two Unit
Set it up independently, alone, beside the province’s Stacks sub-steps. The units get their movement allowances again at the
unit stack (if any). It never counts against the stacking beginning of each leader campaign.
limit. • Unexpended movement allowance cannot be kept from one
• A Horde is never stacked. Set it up independently, movement step to the next nor transferred from one unit to another.
alone, clearly visible next to a Barbarian stack (if any). • Units are split into two types for movement allowance:
It never counts against the stacking limit. o Infantry: 3 paces. Cavalry: 4 paces.
• The same applies for any city (fortified or not) or a pillage • A Barbarian Horde has its own specific movement allowance that is
marker. depicted on its counter.
• A leader is placed on top of a stack of units. It never counts against • A Leader increases the movement allowances above by +1 pace,
the stacking limit. but only if the units move with the leader for their entire movement.
• During leader campaigns, units may move only to join the leader or
under his direction (→ XXII.B).
• Limites never move, they are fixed in place.
C. End of Movement
• Units must stop when they enter a province that contains units of a
hostile nation, even if controlled by the same player.
• Exceptions:
o Within a Barbarian Area, other Barbarian units do not stop a
Barbarian nation’s stacks.
o Overrun (→ XVIII.E) merely slows down a stack.
o Passage in force (→ XVIII.F) stops a number of units in order to
allow later stacks to go through unimpeded.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 15

D. Dropping Off and Picking Up G. Migration of a Horde
• A stack may drop off units and continue moving. It may also pick up • Except during an invasion, a horde can move only by migration. It
units along the way. Units that leave a stack may move later, units flees or retreats normally.
that join a stack may have moved before: the only limitation is the o During an invasion, a horde can move freely like an infantry.
individual units’ movement allowances. • To migrate, the horde moves together with all of the nation’s units
• Units that do not move with a leader for their entire movement do not and without attacking, during the Unit Stacks Movement sub-step.
benefit from his movement allowance bonus. • A Barbarian horde cannot stack with anything else, which prevents it
Example: Roman emperor Iulianus starts from Osroene with a stack of from moving during a leader campaign (→ XXII).
4 fresh units (3 cavalry and 1 infantry). He first moves into Amida, • A horde’s migration cannot be intercepted.
friendly territory. The Roman player then moves a stack of 2 cavalry and H. Invasions
1 infantry from Coele Syria to join him in Amida. The emperor’s stack,
• The Time Table indicates the turns when Barbarian nations invade.
now 7 strong, resumes moving into Euphrates, overrunning the lone
Satrapes defending it. That’s 3 paces spent by each unit so far: the • An invading Barbarian nation is especially active and dangerous.
1 infantry originally from Coele Syria can no longer move. The remaining → Invasion
units move one last time into Babylonia (the infantry from Osroene can
because it spent its entire movement with the emperor). • When invading, the Barbarian nation plays its Unit Stacks sub-step
twice in a row during its activation: 1st movement + combat
E. Overrun
followed by 2nd movement + combat.
• If a moving stack has 6 units (or more) versus a single enemy unit • While invading, the Barbarian nation benefits from a stacking bonus
that did not successfully flee (→ XIX.B), it can overrun it. of +1 unit everywhere. This is cumulative with any leader bonus.
• The overrun unit is eliminated without combat. Stacking is checked after each of the two movement sub-steps,
• An Overrun costs a moving stack an extra 1 pace (in addition to the however.
regular 1 to move into a province). A stack can't overrun if it only has • After the invasion Unit Stacks sub-step, a Barbarian leader carries
1 pace left. out his campaigns still benefitting from this stacking bonus.
• Exceptions: Roman Limites, fortified cities, and straits cannot be
I. The Roman Limites
overrun.
• Limites (fortifications and walls, singular Limes)
Example: Roman emperor Iulianus enters Mesopotamia with a mixed protected the borders of the Roman Empire until
stack of 7 units (cavalry and infantry). He first moves into Adiabene 500 AD (turn 7, inclusive).
(costing 1 pace) where 1 Persian unit is located. The Persians refuse to
• The Roman Empire (Western and Eastern) has various Limes
react (no interception nor flight). The Roman player announces an
counters set up in its border provinces at the game’s outset.
Overrun (costing another pace) and eliminates the Persian unit. Iulianus
• A Limes has a blocking effect. All invaders must stop when they
continues into Akkad (costing a third pace) where there is another
cross into a border province where a Limes is located. No passage in
Persian unit, which also does not react. The Romans announce a
force, overrun, or raid in depth is possible.
second overrun, spending a fourth pace. Although his cavalry could still
• The Limes counter is set up in a separate stack, clearly visible, next
move one last province, Iulianus wisely stops now, as his infantry can no
longer continue (the cavalry movement allowance is 4 + 1 [leader] = 5 to any Roman stack present. It does not count against the stacking
limit, but there can only be one per province.
paces; while the infantry movement allowance is 3 + 1 [leader] = 4
paces). • It counts as a unit for the Romans in defense if supporting units are
present. It can be assigned a hit.
F. Passage in Force • If the Limes is unsupported, there is no battle. It is immediately
• This is a special movement that allows stacks to cross an enemy destroyed, inflicting a hit on the enemy (→ XX.H) if a D2 check is
province without stopping there once other units have forced the passed.
passage for them. • If the Romans succeed in intercepting (→ XIX.A) inside a province
• If twice as many units are moved into the attacked province as there garrisoned only by a Limes, the Limes is destroyed and makes the
are defenders there, the defending units are neutralized. D2 check as above before the arrival of the intercepting stack.
o The units used for the passage in force are subject to the • If the Roman player loses and then recaptures border provinces that
stacking limits, cannot move any further, and will participate in a previously had Limites, they may rebuild them at no cost (during the
battle against the defending units in the following combat sub- Purchases step).
step. • On the Purchases step of turn 8, all Limites are removed from play
o Other units can freely cross the province, but it remains hostile. and become local units (flip the counters): These units follow special
• A large enemy presence will prevent passage in force if the friendly rules (→ Romans: P and Byzantines: R Player Aids).
stacking limit is insufficient.
• Exceptions: Roman Limites, fortified cities, and straits do not allow
passage in force.
Example: The Visigoths have 1 unit in Aquitania. The Frankish player
moves 2 units into this province to create a passage in force. Other
Frankish units may now freely move through Aquitania without stopping.
If the Visigoths had 3 units in Aquitania, the Frankish player would have
needed to move 6 units there to establish passage in force, which would
only be possible with a leader because of the stacking limit (4 for terrain
+ 2 for leader).

16 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

J. Straits → Consequences of Success
• A two-way arrow on the map linking • The intercepting stack joins a defending stack in the target province
two provinces over a sea indicates a or moves there if the province was undefended.
strait. • If the stacking limit of the target province would be exceeded by the
• Provinces linked by a strait are intercepting stacks, units in excess must be left behind.
considered adjacent to each other. • Units may not be dropped off along the way.
• A land force may cross a Strait. No fleet is necessary.
• To move through a Strait, the stack must start its move in the → Interception Confrontation
province on one side of the strait and then move to the other side.
• Once all interception attempts are resolved, a confrontation occurs
This uses up all of the stack’s units’ paces (exception:
between the intercepted (attacker) and intercepting (defender)
→ Byzantines: P Player Aid). stacks—unless the target province remained empty.
• A strait prevents overruns or passage in force. A strait may also be • If the intercepted stack exceeds the target province’s stacking limit,
blockaded (→ XXV.F). On the other hand, an interception or flight the units in excess (chosen by their owner) do not participate in the
can cross a strait without needing to limit its movement to the confrontation but share the fate of the rest of their stack.
crossing (→ XIX.A)—unless blockaded. • The intercepted stack can overrun or use passage in force if
K. Special Cases applicable. Otherwise an immediate battle is resolved (→ XX).
• The following Barbarian areas and provinces are forbidden, except • If the intercepted stack loses, it must retreat and its movement ends.
for some units. Otherwise, it resumes its movement.
o Scythia Area: Only open to Nomadic Barbarians and, on Turn Example: In 375 AD, the Visigoths invade the Roman Empire in
1 only, to the Ostrogoths. (→ Goths: D Player Aid) ungarrisoned Moesia Inferior. The Roman player reacts with attempted
o Arabia Deserta province: Only open to Arab raiders. interceptions using a leader-less stack in neighbouring Thracia and a six-
o Mauretania Area: Only open to Berber raiders and Mauritanians. unit strong stack in Cappadocia with Emperor Valens.
The first stack is checked: the D10 roll is a 3, +2 for Empire = 5, so it's a
XIX OPPONENT’S REACTION failure. The second stack is then checked: the roll is 9, +1 for leader,
+2 for Empire, –2 for strait, –2 for the Bosphorus, and –1 for land
A. Interception distance of 3 paces = 7. This interception is a success!
• When a nation enters an enemy-controlled province, the province’s The second Roman stack moves to Moesia Inferior, but must leave one
controller (the opponent) may react, announcing an immediate unit behind in Cappadocia to respect the stacking limit of the interception
interception. The interception process also appears on the map. province: 3 for mountain terrain +2 for leader = 5 units.
• Interception movement and combat occur out-of-sequence, as part
B. Flight
of the active stack’s movement. Interception may not be intercepted.
• The opponent may react with one leader-less stack and with multiple • When a nation enters an enemy-controlled province, the province’s
stacks with leaders. controller (the opponent) may react, announcing an immediate
• The opponent must designate all the stacks that are reacting before flight. The flight process also appears on the map.
resolving any of the interception attempts. The reacting stacks may • Flight occurs out-of-sequence, as part of the active stack’s
leave units behind. movement. Flight may not use naval transport (→ XXV.D) nor be
• Units that are under attack by the active nation cannot intercept. intercepted.
• A land connection must exist from the location of each intercepting • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
stack to the interception province through empty, neutral, or friendly o +? Combat bonus of fleeing stack’s leader, if present
provinces (→ XII.D). Passage through an unblockaded strait is o +3 the starting province has a fortified city
allowed (→ XXV.F). o +3 the opponent has twice as many units as the attacker
o –1 the opponent has less cavalry than the attacker
• The maximum land distance is 3 paces, regardless of the movement
o –2 if flight must start by crossing a river, ridge, or strait
allowances of the intercepting stacks.
• Result ≥ 9: The flight attempt succeeds.
Example: A stack in Thracia could intercept as far south as Achaia; as
far west as Illyricum, Dalmatia, Savus, or Tisia; as far north as Dacia or → Consequences of Failure
Hypanis; as far east as Pontus, Melitene, or Cilicia.
• The opponent’s stack remains in the attacked province and a
• To resolve each stack’s interception attempt, roll a D10 with the passage in force, overrun, or battle takes place normally.
following modifiers:
o +? Combat bonus of the leader present, if any → Consequences of Success
o +3 if the target province contains the opponent's capital • The opponent flees up to 3 paces through empty, neutral, or friendly
o +2 if the opponent is an Empire
provinces (→ XII.D) and across unblockaded straits (→ XXV.F),
o –1 if the land distance is 3 paces
regardless of the movement allowances of the fleeing units.
o –2 for each ridge or strait crossed
o A hostile province may be entered if overrun (→ XVIII.E).
o –2 if crossing the Bosphorus (→ Byzantines: P Player Aid)
• A fleeing stack may leave some units behind. If a leader is present,
• Result ≥ 6: The interception succeeds.
his combat bonus applies whether or not he flees himself.
→ Consequences of Failure • Units may be dropped off along the way.
• The destination provinces must be friendly or else empty and rural.
• The intercepting stack remains in its starting province.
• Stacking limits apply in the destination and drop-off provinces.
• It can no longer attempt to intercept the active stack (i.e. in provinces
• A fled stack may nevertheless intercept other stacks that move later
further along its movement path). However, it can attempt to
in the turn.
intercept other stacks later in the turn.
• Once the opponent's flight is complete, the active player stack
resumes its movement.
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 17
 D. Archery Round
XX COMBAT
• The archer units (including Frankish infantry) of both
Battle Sequence sides, if present, engage in an exchange of fire
before the start of the melee round.
1. Tactical Advantages • Results of both sides are simultaneous unless it’s an ambush.
2. Archery Round
• Dice pools. Each side gets 1 white die for each:
3. Melee Round
o 2 archers (e.g. 3 archers = 2 dice).
4. Victory Determination
o 4 Frankish infantry ( ) (e.g. 1–4 Frankish infantry = 1 die).
5. Leader Elimination
6. Recovery • Dice losses and trades:
7. Retreat o A side loses 1 die if its opponent has the heavy advantage.
o If in clear, steppe, or desert, each side can trade 1 white die for
A. Overview a black one for every 2 horse archers it has (e.g. 1–2 horse
• After movement, combat takes place in every province that has units archers = 1 trade).
of 2 unfriendly nations, even if they belong to the same player. • A side may have no dice during this round.
• Combat can also occur during movement as part of interception • Surviving archer units battle normally during the ensuing melee
(→ XIX.A). round.
• The active nation is the Attacker and the other is the Defender. • If hits are inflicted, the cavalry and heavy advantages may change,
• Each battle is resolved in turn, in attacker’s choice of sequence, until so they should be redetermined before the melee round.
all are completed. • The battle ends prematurely if one or both sides are completely
• A battle consists of an archery round followed if necessary by a eliminated. Proceed directly to J: Leader Elimination.
single melee round. → Mountains Ambush
• Combat uses custom battle dice.
• A leader allows a number of re-rolls during the melee round of the • If the battle takes place in mountain terrain, the Defender can set up
battle. an ambush archery round.
• A leader may die if his stack is completely eliminated. • Exception: No ambush can take place if the attacking leader has a
• Some battle losses may be recovered after the battle’s completion. Mountains icon : Alaricus, Belisarius, Feargus, Baianus in
• The loser retreats if not completely eliminated. Invasions Vol. I.
• Event cards may also affect combat. • The ambush is automatic if the attacker crossed a ridge or a river to
enter the mountainous province. Otherwise, it happens only if a
B. Battle Dice D2 check is passed. If failed, the archery round is normal (if there is
• There are two types of Battle dice: white and black. Their faces may one).
be blank or show 1 or 2 swords, either white or red. Each sword • In a mountains ambush archery round:
rolled will count for 1 hit, although red swords only count in certain o Mountaineer units (bearing a mountains icon ) count double.
terrain types. o For each 4 other non-Frankish infantry units, the ambushing
side gets 1 white die.
o The attacker fires back with their surviving units only.
E. Leaders’ Re-Rolls
• Each leader has a combat bonus of 0 to 3 (top left).
• This is the number of re-rolls this leader may call for.
• Each melee round (not during the archery round), after both players
White die Black Die have rolled their dice, each player may declare that one or more of
3 blanks 2 blanks the dice (theirs or their opponent’s) must be re-rolled. The Attacker
1 white sword 1 white sword declares first.
1 red sword 1 red sword
• Each re-roll allows the player to designate a die and re-roll it. The
1 white+red swords 1 white+red swords
new result stands (but may be re-rolled again).
1 two white swords
• A player is never forced to use all of their re-rolls.
C. Tactical Advantages
• OPTION: A leader with a combat bonus of at least 2 may forfeit a re-
• There are two Tactical Advantages: cavalry and heavy. roll (no more than once) to add a black die to his side’s dice pool
• They are checked before archery round and again before the melee (see below) or to remove a black die (if any) from the opponent’s
round. dice pool. This must be announced before the start of the melee
→ Cavalry Advantage round once the dice pools have been prepared. The Attacker
declares first.
• A side with 2 cavalry units more than its opponent or
with 1 cavalry unit facing none gains the cavalry
advantage.
→ Heavy Advantage
• A side with 2 heavy units more than its opponent or
with 1 heavy unit facing none gains the heavy
advantage.

18 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

• Mixed tactical situations: In XX.F and XX.G below, the cases marked H. Melee Round
† indicate that for a die to be added or removed, all of the units • Once the number of dice and their colours are set, the melee round
involved must comply. can be resolved.
Example: For the attacker to lose the ‘Strait’ die, all of the attacking • The results (hits) of both sides are simultaneous.
units must have crossed the strait. • Both players roll their dice. By convention, the Attacker rolls first.
• Mixed stacks: The cases marked ‡ indicate that for a modifier to • Each sword rolled is a hit on the opponent’s units.
apply, it is enough that one of the units involved satisfy the condition • Red swords inflict hits only in clear, steppe, or desert.
(on both sides if pertinent). → Hits
Example: In a fight between Civilized and Barbarian units in a
Barbarian province, attacking Barbarians enjoy an additional die if • Each player decides and chooses their own losses: i.e. each
there is one Barbarian unit in the attacking stack and one Civilized selects which of their units are damaged or eliminated by the hits.
unit in the defending stack—even if Kingdom units (vassals) make • A hit eliminates a standard unit or damages an elite unit (flip the
up the rest of the attacking stack or if Barbarian units (federates or unit, turning it into a standard infantry or fleet unit).
vassals) make up the rest of the Civilized stack. • When a stack contains both national (including auxiliaries) and
foreign units (mercenaries), the first unit eliminated must be a
F. Dice Pools national one.
• Each unit (except Hordes and Limites) engaged in a battle initially • A Barbarian horde can only be hit last; this does not eliminate the
provides 1 white die. horde but instead causes its nation to submit to its victor
• Terrain and other factors affect the number of white dice as follows: (→ XXIX.B).
→ Attacker’s Dice removed (cumulative) I. Victory Determination
o –1 Marsh • Victory is determined as follows:
o –1 Crossing a strait, river, or ridge † (except if intercepted) o If a nation eliminates all enemy units, it is the victor.
o –1 Forest (if the Defender is a non-Nomad Barbarian ‡) o Otherwise, the nation with the fewer units eliminated is the
victor.
• Amphibious land units ( ) ignore the river penalty. o Otherwise (if tied), the defending nation is the victor if its fortified
• The river, strait, or ridge die loss for the Attacker does not apply city or horde is present.
during an interception, even if the Defender had forces in place o Otherwise (if no fortified city or horde), the nation’s leader with
before adding intercepting units. the better combat bonus is the victor.
o Otherwise (if tied), the defender is the victor.
→ Attacker’s Dice added
• The loser must retreat.
o +1 Barbarian attacker in a Barbarian province vs. Civilized ‡
J. Leader Elimination
→ Defender’s Dice added (cumulative) • When a stack is completely eliminated (before the subsequent
o +1 Fortified city recovery), its leader is eliminated if a D2 check is failed.
o +1 Limes • A surviving lone leader retreats to the nearest friendly province,
o +1 One or more Hordes (e.g. allied Barbarians) regardless of distance and of intervening hostile provinces.
• When an Empire is In Decline, each time a leader gains a victory
• Neither side may ever be reduced to less than 1 die. (attacking or defending), roll a D10 check: on 8+, the leader is
• Event Cards may provide or remove dice in some cases. assassinated (eliminated).
G. Dice Trades • An eliminated intrinsic leader comes back as a reinforcement next
turn.
• A white die can be traded for a black die in each of the following
cases: K. Recovery
✓ Have 2+ elites (2 trades for Rome or Byzantium with 4+ elites) • Once victory has been determined (and leaders eliminated if
✓ Cavalry advantage applicable), each side recovers 2 eliminated units of their choice.
✓ Empire vs. Barbarians † • An eliminated elite unit is recovered damaged, i.e. flipped.
✓ Nomads in steppe † • Small Battles: If one of the two sides had only 2 units at the start of
the battle, each side recovers only 1 eliminated unit. If one of the
✓ Fortified city (Empire only)
two sides had only 1 unit at the start of the battle, neither side
• Reminder: A Barbarian nation cannot use its elite units as elite. The recovers any units.
icon is ignored and the units are considered 'standard'. • Nomad Barbarians: When a nomad Barbarian nation submits
Barbarians must become civilized to gain their units’ elite benefits. another Barbarian nation in a Barbarian Area, they choose the units
that their new vassal recovers (→ XXIX.B).
• A black die must be traded for a white die in the following case: • Civilized Nations: Once losses have been recovered (even if no units
✗ Opponent has the heavy advantage were recovered), each Civilized nation involved may restore 1 elite
• If there is no black die to trade for a white one, the opponent’s heavy unit by flipping it to its front side.
advantage is disregarded. • Naval Battles: All damaged elite fleets are flipped back to their front
• Event Cards may provide die trades in some cases. These occur last side.
unless the card specifies otherwise.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 19

L. Retreat
• Retreats cannot use naval transport (→ XXV.D) nor be intercepted.
• The loser’s units must retreat up to 3 paces through empty, neutral,
or friendly provinces (→ XII.D) and across unblockaded straits
(→ XXV.F), regardless of their movement allowances.
o A hostile province may be entered if overrun (→ XVIII.E) or, in
the Attacker’s case, if passage in force is in place (→ XVIII.F).
• A retreating stack may split and drop off units.
• The destination provinces must be friendly or else empty and rural.
• The stacking limit must be respected in the destination province(s).
• The Attacker must retreat in the direction of the provinces it came
from when it entered the battle’s province.
• The Defender may never retreat towards or through a province the
Attacker came from.
• Retreating stacks may move into provinces where a battle is yet to
be resolved involving friendly stacks. b) Archery Round
o Set them aside in these provinces. They are ignored for those
The Romans have no archers. The Persians’ 3 horse archers provide
battles; however, if a battle results in a defeat for the friendly
2 white dice, one of which is then lost because of the Roman heavy
units or the retreating units can’t stop there for some other advantage, while the other is traded for a black one thanks to the
reason such as exceeding stacking limits after the battle, they horse archers in clear terrain (the other trade has no die to apply to).
will be forced to resume their retreat. Bad luck, the die roll provides only 1 sword (1 hit), which the Romans
• When retreating, a Barbarian stack may cross any province in a assign to one of their legions (elite, thus flipped).
Barbarian Area, whether it is occupied or not. c) Dice Pools
• A Limes may not retreat.
The Romans have 7 units, so 7 white dice.
• If no retreat is possible, the units are eliminated. The Persians have 6 units and the fortified city, so 6+1 = 7 white dice.
Example 1 – First Battle of Assyria d) Dice Trades
Three Persian archers, two of which are horse archers, are in a battle against a The Romans have 8 elites remaining (bonus +2) = 2 trades
Roman force which includes 2 archers (one mounted, the other not). During the The Persians have 2 elites (bonus +1) =1 trade; and the cavalry advantage (+1),
archery round, the Persians have 2 dice (3 archers rounded up) while the so 2 trades in total. The fortified city does not give a trade as Persia is still a
Romans have 1 (2 archers). Additionally, the Persians may trade one of their two Kingdom.
white dice for a black one because they have 2 horse archers and the battle is in
The Romans trade 2 of their 7 white dice for black.
clear terrain.
The Persians trade 2 of their 7 white dice for black. Then, the Persians trade a
If the Romans had the heavy advantage (two more heavy units than the
black die back for a white one because of the Roman heavy advantage.
Persians), the Persians’ 2 dice would be reduced to only 1, which would then be
traded for a black die thanks to their 2 horse archers in clear terrain. Because the  Romans: 5 white dice, 2 black dice
horse archer trade up occurs after the heavy advantage die loss during an  Persians: 6 white dice, 1 black die
archery round, there is no way for the heavy advantage of one side to make the
other side lose a black die, although it can prevent the trade up by removing a e) Melee Round
lone white die. Leaders: Iulianus has 3 re-rolls and Sapor II has 2.
Example 2 – Ambush in Armenia Minor
A stack of Persians in Pontus enters Armenia Minor, defended by a stack of The Romans roll a total of 5 swords (including a red one, which counts because
2 Armenian mountaineer archers and 3 other infantry units (2 of which are also the battle is in clear terrain).
Armenian). Because the Persians crossed a ridge, the Armenian ambush
succeeds automatically. The Armenian defender gets 4 white dice: 2 for the
2 Armenian archers (which count as 4, being mountaineers), 1 for the The Persians roll a total of only 3 swords (including a red one).
2 Armenian mountaineer infantries (also counting as 4), and 1 for the remaining The Persians do not like this and call for two re-rolls, one for the Romans
foreign unit (¼ die, rounded up to 1 white die). (choosing a Roman white die with 1 sword) and one for themselves (their own
Example 3 –Battle for Nisibis black die). They have now used all of their re-rolls…
In 350 AD, Roman Emperor Iulianus fights a battle in the province of Assyria The Roman re-roll is slightly worse this time, with a blank for a →
against the Sassanid Persian Sapor II, in front of the fortified city of Nisibis, new total of 4 swords. Meanwhile the Persians do not improve
recently captured by the Persians. No rivers were crossed, no interception took either, still with just 3 swords. →
place, and the terrain is clear.
Now the Romans call for a re-roll for themselves for their other
• Romans (7 units): 5 Legions (2 Roman, 3 Byzantine)
black die. This gains them a sword, so they are back to a total of →
, 1 Guard , 1 Palatine cavalry
5 swords.
• Persians (6 units): 1 Clibanarii cavalry , 1 heavy cavalry ,
3 horse archers , 1 elite infantry Romans: → inflict 5 hits.
Persians: → inflict 3 hits.
a) Tactical Advantages
The Romans flip an intact legion then eliminate it (2 hits), and eliminate the
The Romans have the heavy advantage (7 against 2). legion already hit during the archery round.
The Persians have the cavalry advantage (5 against 1).
The Persians flip their Clibanarii cavalry then eliminate it (2 hits), do the same
with their elite infantry unit (2 hits), and finally eliminate one horse archer.
f) Victory Determination
The Romans win (2 units lost vs. 3 for the Persians).

20 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

g) Recovery e) Melee Round
The Romans recover two losses, bringing the two eliminated legions back into Leaders: Gratianus and the intrinsic Alemanni leader (rex) each have 1 re-roll.
play (recovered flipped).
The Persians recover two losses: their elite infantry and their Clibanarii cavalry
The Alemanni roll only 5 swords, including 2 red ones.
(both of which are recovered flipped).
Both players are civilized, so they each can flip back one elite unit. The Persians
flip back their Clibanarii cavalry and the Romans flip back one of their legions. The Romans roll well and gain 6 swords, 2 of which are red.
h) Retreat The Alemanni call for their opponent to re-roll the black die with
The Persians decide to retreat as far as Akkad (3 provinces away from the 2 swords. The blank that comes up reduces the Roman sword →
battle). total to 4.
i) Siege of Nisibis (fortified city) (→ XXIV) The Romans are unhappy with this and call for a re-roll for
Dice modifiers: –2 (walls value) +1 (civilized besieger) = –1 themselves for the same black die. They roll 2 swords again. →
The Romans do not assault, rolling just 4 dice (1 base + 3 for Iulianus’s combat Their total is back to 6 swords.
value): 6, 9, 3, 7 → victory! Nisibis surrenders and Assyria becomes Roman Both players have exhausted their re-rolls.
again.
As the battle is in forest, the red swords are ignored.
Example 4 – Battle of Argentoratum
Alemanni: 5 swords (2 red) → inflict 3 hits.
In 350 AD, the Alemanni invade Gallia Septentrionalis and cross the Rhine into Romans: 6 swords (1 red) → inflict 5 hits.
the province of Lotharingia (no city has been founded yet on the Argentoratum
The Romans lose two auxiliary infantries and flip one legion.
site). The Limes stops their movement but is destroyed. A die is rolled, the result
The Alemanni lose five infantry.
is odd, so the Limes does not inflict a hit on the invader.
f) Victory Determination
A Western Roman army (led by Emperor Gratianus) intercepts the Alemanni,
which means the Rhine crossing has no effect (the Alemanni had enough time to The Romans win (2 units lost vs. 5 for the Alemanni).
cross the river before the Romans arrived). g) Recovery
The Alemanni recover two infantry units.
The Romans recover two auxiliary infantry units.
The Romans, being a civilized nation, flip back their damaged Palatine cavalry,
bringing it to full strength. The damaged legion remains so.
h) Retreat
The Alemanni retreat back across the Rhine and wait for better times in the
forests of Germania.
Emperor Gratianus, as a recent victor over the invaders, is now ready to help his
uncle Valens in the East. Or not…
Example 5 – Battle of Adrianopolis
In 375 AD, King Fritigernus of the Visigoths invades the Roman Empire. His
force is 7 strong (stacking 4 + leader 2 + invasion 1), including an Ostrogoth-lent
noble cavalry (→ Goths Player Aid: A), and headed for Chalcidica. He crosses
the Danube, overruns a lone unit in Moesia Inferior, and reaches Dardania
before the Eastern Romans intercept him with an army under the command of
Emperor Valens. The Western Roman Empire tries to intercept as well, but is too
The Alemanni horde cannot attack so the player places it in the rear. far away and fails. A big battle will now begin.
• Alemanni (7 units): 6 infantries and 1 archer (the horde doesn’t count)
• Romans (6 units): 1 elite cavalry , 2 legions ,
2 auxiliary infantries, 1 infantry (the flip side of the Palatine cavalry)
a) Tactical Advantages
The Alemanni have no advantage.
The Romans have the heavy (2 against 0) and cavalry advantages (1 against 0).
b) Archery Round
The Alemanni have an archer, which would give 1 die, but the heavy advantage
of the Romans removes it. The Romans have no archers, so there is no archery
fire from either side.
c) Dice Pools
The Alemanni have 7 units, so 7 white dice.
The Romans have 6 units, so 6 white dice.
d) Dice Trades
The Roman heavy advantage would normally force the Alemanni to trade a black
die for a white one, but they have none, so nothing happens. The Romans intercepted in mountain terrain, but since they did not cross a ridge
Because the Romans are an Empire facing Barbarians, they trade 1 of their or river, a Visigoth ambush is not automatic. The Visigoth die roll check is odd,
6 white dice for a black one. A Roman stack entirely made up of auxiliaries would so no ambush occurs.
not have had this advantage. The cavalry advantage gives the Romans a second Because Dardania’s mountain terrain has a base stacking limit of 3, one of the
trade. Visigoth units will have to wait out the battle. The infantry is chosen.
 Alemanni: 7 white dice
 Romans: 4 white dice, 2 black dice

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 21

• Romans (5 units): 1 Palatine cavalry , 1 auxiliary horse archer , i) Retreat
1 Guard , 1 legion , 1 auxiliary infantry The Eastern Roman army is now only two units strong and retreats to
• Visigoths (6 units): 4 heavy cavalry , Constantinopolis under the leadership of Theodosius.
1 Ostrogoth noble cavalry , 1 archer
XXI ADVANCED COMBAT
a) Tactical Advantages
The Visigoths have the cavalry and heavy advantages. Battle Sequence
b) Archery Round
1. Tactical Advantages
The Roman horse archer provides a white die, which is lost because of the 2. Archery Round
Visigoth heavy advantage. st 3. 1 Melee Round
The Visigoth archer gets lucky and rolls a white sword. A red 4. 2nd Melee Round
sword would have been ignored since the terrain is mountain. 5. Victory Determination
The Romans eliminate their auxiliary infantry. 6. Leader Elimination
7. Recovery
c) Dice Pools
8. Retreat
The Romans have 4 units remaining, so 4 white dice.
The Visigoths have 6 units, so 6 white dice. A. Overview
d) Dice Trades • Advanced Combat is like normal combat with two exceptions:
The Romans have 4+ elite units: 2 trades. As an Empire facing Barbarians, they o The archery round is followed by at most two melee rounds.
would normally get a third trade, but this is voided by the Visigoth heavy o It uses 2D6 rolls and a similar but different set of modifiers.
advantage.
B. Tactical Advantages
The Visigoths get a trade from their cavalry advantage.
 Romans: 2 white dice, 2 black dice • The two Advantages, cavalry and heavy, are the same.
• They are checked before each round (archery and melee) of battle.
 Visigoths: 5 white dice, 1 black die
C. Archery Round
e) Melee Round
Leaders: Fritigernus has 2 re-rolls, Valens has 1. • The archery round occurs as in basic combat, including the
possibility of a mountains ambush and the mountaineer advantage.
• Each side that has firing capability rolls 2D6 and applies the following
The Romans roll 5 swords—none are red. modifiers:
o +1 per archer unit (+1½ per horse archer unit in clear, steppe,
The Visigoths roll 7 swords—plus a red one which is ignored because of the or desert)
terrain. o +½ per Frankish infantry unit (using francisque axes )
o +½ per other unit (mountain ambusher only)
The Romans call for the Visigoths to re-roll their black die, but
→ o –2 if the opponent has the heavy advantage
the Visigoths get lucky and roll another double-sword. The
Romans no longer have any re-rolls. • The resulting roll is looked up on the Firing Combat Table:
The Visigoths then call for the Romans to re-roll one of their white dice and the o ≤7 miss
black die with 2 swords. o 8 1 hit in clear, desert, or steppe
o 9–11 1 hit
The Romans fail with their black die, getting a blank, while their →
white die re-roll produces two swords, one of them red (ignored
o 12+ 2 hits
because of the mountain terrain). Their total is now 3 swords. →
• If hits are inflicted, the cavalry and heavy advantages may have
Visigoths: 7 swords → 7 hits. changed. This may also be important in an ambush since the
Romans: 3 swords → 3 hits. ambushee fires back after taking their hits.
The Visigoths lose their archer and two heavy cavalries. • The battle ends prematurely if one or both sides are completely
eliminated. Proceed directly to Leader Elimination (H).
The Romans flip and eliminate their legion (2 hits) and their palatine cavalry
(2 hits), eliminate their horse archer (1 hit), and finally flip and eliminate their last D. Leaders’ Re-Rolls
unit, the Guard (2 hits).
• Leader’s re-rolls work the same way as in normal combat.
f) Victory Determination
The Visigoths win as their enemy’s entire force was eliminated. • OPTION: A leader with a combat bonus of at least 2 may forfeit a re-
g) Leader Elimination roll (no more than once per melee round) to gain a ±2 tactical
modifier for either side. This must be announced before any dice
The Eastern Roman army was destroyed in battle and therefore Valens, its
leader, must survive a die roll check to avoid his own elimination. The die is odd: have been rolled. The Attacker declares first.
Valens is killed. E. Modifiers
Special: Emperor Theodosius is immediately gained as a reinforcement on a
• There are a number of modifiers that are applied to the 2D6 thrown
Western Roman stack (→ Romans: D Player Aid). The Roman player chooses
by either side during each melee round. They replace the dice pools
to deploy him to the soon-to-be-recovered Dardanian stack.
and dice trades of normal combat.
h) Recovery
The Romans recover two units, their Guard and their Palatine cavalry (both • † Mixed tactical situations: For a modifier marked † in XXI.E to apply,
recovered flipped). all of the units involved must satisfy the condition.
The Visigoths choose to recover a heavy cavalry and their archer. The infantry • ‡ Stacks of mixed origins: For a modifier marked ‡ to apply, it is
that waited out the battle rejoins the stack, and King Fritigernus’s movement can enough that one of the units involved satisfy the condition (on both
now resume. sides if pertinent).
The Romans, a civilized nation, restore their Guard unit back to full strength.

22 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

→ Attacker G. Victory Determination
o –1 Marsh • Victory determination works the same way as in normal combat.
o –1 Crossing a strait † (except if intercepted) H. Leader Elimination
o –1 Crossing a river or ridge †, 1st round only (except if
intercepted) • Leader elimination works the same way as in normal combat.
o –1 Forest (if the Defender is a non-Nomad Barbarian ‡) I. Recovery
o +1 Barbarian attacker in a Barbarian province vs. Civilized ‡
• Recovery works the same way as in normal combat.
• Amphibious land units ( ) ignore the river penalty. J. Retreat
• The river, strait, and ridge penalties do not apply when the Attacker
is intercepted, even if the Defender had forces in place before adding • Retreat works the same way as in normal combat.
the intercepting units. Example 1 (Advanced Combat) –Battle for Nisibis
→ Defender In 350 AD, Roman Emperor Iulianus fights a battle in the province of Assyria
against the Sassanid Persian Shapur II, in front of the fortified city of Nisibis,
o +1 Fortified city (+2 if empire) recently captured by the Persians. No rivers were crossed, no interception took
o +1 Attacker is crossing a strait † place, and the terrain is clear.
• Romans (7 units): 5 Legions (2 Roman, 3 Byzantine)
• Note that crossing a strait both causes the Attacker to suffer a –
, 1 Guard , 1 Palatine cavalry
1 penalty and the defender to gain a +1 bonus.
• Persians (6 units): 1 Clibanarii cavalry , 1 heavy cavalry ,
→ Tactical Situation 3 horse archers , 1 elite infantry
o +1 Have 2+ elites (+2 for Rome or Byzantium with 4+ elites) a) Tactical advantages
o +1 Cavalry advantage The Romans have 9 elites (bonus +2) = +2 ; and the heavy advantage.
o –1 Opponent has the heavy advantage The Persians have the cavalry advantage (+1), 2 elites (+1) and the fortified city
o +1 Empire vs. Barbarians ‡ (+1) → +3 –1 (Roman heavy advantage) = +2.
o +1 Nomads in steppe ‡ b) Archery Round
o ±? Event card
The Romans have no archers. The Persian archers fire → 2D6 =
F. Melee Rounds 3 +5 (horse archers) –2 (heavy) = 6 → nothing.
• The two melee rounds now take place, one after the other. c) 1st Melee Round
o The battle ends prematurely if one or both sides are completely Leaders: Iulianus has 3 re-rolls and Shapur II has 2.
eliminated on the first melee round. Proceed directly to Leader The Romans roll 2D6 and get 11 +2 = 13. The Persians roll 6 +2 = 8. The
Elimination (H). Persians do not like it and ask for two re-rolls, one for the Romans and one for
o Otherwise, after the first melee round the defender and then the themselves (using all of their re-rolls).
attacker may declare a voluntary retreat, conceding victory to Romans re-roll 2D6, getting 6 +2 = 8. Persians re-roll 5 +2 = 7. The Persians
the other side. Proceed directly to Recovery (I). must keep this roll (which is worse than the first time), but the Romans ask for a
re-roll for themselves. They get 6 +2 = 8. They still do not like it and ask for
• The melee round results (hits) of both sides are simultaneous. another re-roll, this time getting 8 +2 = 10. They decide to keep the roll, saving
• Each side rolls 2D6 and applies all applicable modifiers. their third and last re-roll for the second round.
• The adjusted roll is looked up on the Battle Combat Table, the Romans: 7 units, 10 → 4 hits.
number of units in the rolling side’s stack specifying the column: Persians: 6 units, 7 → 2½ hits, rounded to 3 hits (clear terrain).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7+ → The Romans flip three legions to their damaged side.
2– 0 0 0 ½ ½ 1 1 → The Persians flip their Clibanarii cavalry, flip and then remove the elite
3 0 0 ½ ½ 1 1½ 1½ infantry, and eliminate one horse archer.
4 0 ½ ½ 1 1½ 1½ 2 d) 2nd Melee Round
5 0 ½ 1 1 1½ 2 2
The tactical situation has changed for the Persians as they lost their 2 elites (now
6 0 1 1 1½ 2 2 2½
on their “standard” flip sides) → their bonus goes down to +1 (fortified city)
7 1 1 1½ 1½ 2 2½ 2½ +1 (cavalry advantage) –1 (Roman heavy advantage) = +1.
8 1 1 1½ 2 2½ 2½ 3
The Romans roll 2D6 and obtain 4 +2 = 6. The Persians roll 8 +1 = 9. The
9 1 1½ 2 2 2½ 3 3½
Romans ask for their last re-roll for themselves, and get 6 +2 = 8.
10 1 1½ 2 2½ 3 3½ 4
11 1 1½ 2½ 2½ 3 3½ 4 Romans: 7 units, 2D6 = 6 +2 = 8 → 3 hits.
12+ 1 2 2½ 3 3½ 4 4½ Persians: 4 units, 2D6 = 8 +1 = 9 → 2 hits.
Note: ½ rounds up only in clear, desert, or steppe → The Romans remove two of their already hit legions to satisfy the 2 hits.
→ The Persians remove their remaining 2 horse archers and their already hit
• The rounded result is the number of hits inflicted on the opponent. Clibanarii cavalry.
• One or more Barbarian hordes count as a single unit in defense
e) Victory Determination
(and thus shifts the column used in the Battle Combat Table at most
once). Hordes cannot be eliminated, only submitted (→ XXIX.B). The Romans win (2 units lost vs. 5 for the Persians).
• A Limes counts as a unit for the Romans in defense (and thus shifts f) Recovery
the column used in the Battle Combat Table). It cannot retreat (it is The Persians recover two losses: their elite infantry and Clibanarii cavalry (both
destroyed instead). of them on their flip sides).
The Romans recover two losses, placing their eliminated legions back into play
→ Hits on their flip side.
• Hit assignation works the same way as in normal combat. As both players are Civilized, they can flip one hit elite unit back to its front side,
which the Persians do for their Clibanarii cavalry and the Romans for one of their
legions.
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 23
g) Retreat Example 3 (Advanced Combat) – Battle of Adrianopolis
The Persians decide to retreat as far as Akkad (3 provinces away from the In 375 AD, King Fritigernus of the Visigoths invades the Roman Empire. His
battle). force is 7 strong (stacking 4 + leader 2 + invasion 1), including an Ostrogoth-lent
h) Siege of Nisibis (fortified city) (→ XXIV) noble cavalry (→ Goths Player Aid: A), and headed for Chalcidica. He crosses
the Danube, overruns a lone Roman unit in Moesia Inferior, and reaches
Dice modifiers: –2 (walls) +1 (civilized besieger) = –1
Dardania before the Eastern Romans intercept him with an army under the
The Romans do not assault and roll 4 dice (1 base + 3 for Iulianus’s combat command of Emperor Valens. The Western Roman Empire tries to intercept as
bonus): 6, 9, 3, 7 → victory! Nisibis surrenders and Assyria becomes Roman well, but is too far away and fails. A big battle will now begin.
again.
The Romans intercepted in mountain terrain, but since they did not cross a ridge
Example 2 (Advanced Combat) – Battle of Argentoratum or river, a Visigoth ambush is not automatic. The Visigoth die roll check is odd,
In 350 AD, the Alemanni invade Gallia Septentrionalis and cross the Rhine into so no ambush occurs.
the province of Lotharingia. The Limes stops their movement but is destroyed. A Because Dardania’s mountain terrain has a base stacking limit of 3, one of the
die is rolled, the result is odd, so the Limes does not inflict a hit on the invader. Visigoth units will have to wait out the battle. The infantry is chosen.
A Western Roman army (led by Emperor Gratianus) intercepts the Alemanni, • Visigoths (6 units): 4 heavy cavalry ,
which means the Rhine crossing has no effect (the Alemanni had enough time to 1 Ostrogoth noble cavalry , 1 archer
cross the river before the Romans arrived).
• Romans (5 units): 1 Palatine cavalry , 1 auxiliary horse archer ,
• Alemanni (7 units): 6 infantries, 1 archer 1 Guard , 1 legion , 1 auxiliary infantry
• Romans (6 units): 1 elite cavalry , 2 legions ,
2 auxiliary infantries, 1 infantry (the flip side of the Palatine cavalry) a) Tactical advantages
The Visigoths have the cavalry (+1) and heavy advantages.
a) Tactical advantages The Romans have 4+ elite units (+2) and the advantage of Empire over
The Alemanni have no advantage. Barbarians (+1), but suffer from the Visigoth heavy advantage (–1) = +2.
The Romans have an elite bonus (+1), the advantage of Empire over Barbarians b) Archery Round
(+1), and the heavy and cavalry (+1) advantages = +3. The heavy advantage
decreases the Alemanni’s modifier to –1. The Visigoth archer fires and rolls 11 +1 (archer) = 12 → 2 hits.
The Roman horse archer fires and rolls 5 +1 (archer) = 6 → nothing.
b) Archery Round
Valens has a re-roll, but the Roman player elects to keep it for later.
The Alemanni have an archer, but the heavy advantage of the Romans removes
it. The Romans have no archers, so there is no archery fire from either side. → The Romans flip and remove their legion.
c) 1st Melee Round c) 1st Melee Round
Leaders: Gratianus and the intrinsic Alemanni leader (rex) each have 1 re-roll. Leaders: Fritigernus has 2 re-rolls, Valens has 1.
The Romans roll 2D6 and get 7 +3 = 10, while the Alemanni obtain 7 –1 = 6. The The Romans’ 2D6 gives 7 +2 = 9, while the Visigoths obtain 8 +1 = 9. The
Alemanni ask their opponent to re-roll their dice, and this time the 2D6 shows Romans ask for the Visigoths to re-roll, which they do, and get 11 +1 = 12! The
2 +3 = 5. The Romans are appalled and ask for a re-roll for themselves, getting Romans no longer have re-rolls, to their eternal regret.
9 +3 = 12. Nobody has any re-rolls in store now. Visigoths: 6 units, 2D6 = 11 +1 = 12 → 4 hits.
Alemanni: 7 units, 2D6 = 7 –1 = 6 → 2½ hits, truncated to 2 hits (forest terrain). Romans: 4 units, 2D6 = 7 +2 = 9 → 2 hits.
Romans: 6 units, 2D6 = 9 +3 = 12 → 4 hits. → The Visigoths lose their archer and one heavy cavalry.
→ The Alemanni lose four infantries. → The Romans flip their Guard and Palatine cavalry, and remove both
→ The Romans flip two legions. auxiliaries.
d) 2 Melee Round
nd d) 2 nd Melee Round

The tactical situation has changed, as the Romans no longer have the elite or The tactical situation has changed again, as the Romans have lost their elite
heavy advantages, so the Alemanni no longer suffer the –1 heavy penalty. bonus (all of their elites are flipped), reducing their modifier to zero (+1 for
Empire vs. Barbarian, –1 for Visigoth heavy advantage).
Alemanni: 3 units, 2D6 = 8 → 1½ hit, truncated to 1 hit.
Romans: 6 units, 2D6 = 7 +2 = 9 → 3 hits. The Romans roll 2D6 and obtain 8, while the Visigoths obtain 3 +1 = 4. The
Visigoths use their first re-roll for themselves and this time they get 10 +1 = 11.
→ The Alemanni are totally destroyed and lose their last three units. As they are pleased with the dice, they decide not to use their remaining re-roll.
→ The Romans lose one of their auxiliary infantries.
Visigoths: 4 units, 2D6 = 10 +1 = 11 → 2½ hits, truncated to 2 (mountain).
e) Victory Determination Romans: 2 units, 2D6 = 8 → 1 hit.
The Romans win (1 unit lost vs. 7 for the Alemanni).
→ The Visigoths lose one more heavy cavalry.
f) Recovery → The Romans lose both of their remaining units.
The Romans recover one auxiliary infantry (although entitled to recover two, they e) Victory Determination
only lost one).
The Visigoths win as their enemy is eliminated.
The Alemanni recover two units (infantries).
f) Leader Elimination
The Romans, being the sole Civilized nation, can flip their damaged Palatine
The Eastern Roman army was destroyed in the battle, and thus its leader must
cavalry back to its front side. It is up to full strength again. The two legions
remain flipped. be checked: the die is 3, odd → D2 failed, Valens is killed (→ XX.J).
g) Retreat Special: Emperor Theodosius is immediately received as a reinforcement on a
Western Roman stack (→ Romans: D Player Aid). The Roman player chooses
The Alemanni Barbarians go back across the Rhine and wait for better times in to put him on the vanquished stack.
the forests of Germania.
g) Recovery
Emperor Gratianus, recent victor of the invaders, is nevertheless now ready to
help his uncle Valens in the East. Or not… The Romans recover their Guard and Palatine cavalry (both on their flip side).
Designer Note: For the sake of the example, the Roman player flipped their two The Visigoths choose to recover one heavy cavalry and their archer. The infantry
legions on round 1 and thus lost the heavy advantage and the elite bonus for the that waited out the battle rejoins the stack, and King Fritigernus’s movement can
second round. A clever player would have instead eliminated the two auxiliaries now resume, the Roman interception being completed.
to retain both, knowing that those two losses would be recovered post-battle. The Romans are the only Civilized nation and put their Guard unit back to full
strength (front side).

24 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

h) Retreat B. Benefits of a Fortified City
The Eastern Roman army is now only two units strong and retreats to • It prevents all passages in force (→ XVIII.F), overruns (→ XVIII.E),
Constantinopolis under Theodosius’s leadership.
and raids in depth (→ XI.D).
• It is immune to the Barbarian terror effect (→ XXIV.B).
• Civilized nations: If a battle takes place in the fortified city’s province,
the Defender gets an additional die, upgraded if empire. Advanced
combat: +1 (+2 if empire) to their 2D6 in both rounds of that battle
(→ XXI.E).
• A fortified city inflicts a siege penalty (→ XXIV.C) on any besieger,
usually –2.
XXII MILITARY CAMPAIGNS o Exceptions: Roma’s fortifications inflict only –1. Ctesiphon,
Ravenna, and Constantinopolis inflict –3 (this increases to –4 for
A. Overview Constantinopolis after the Theodosian Walls are built).
• Once a nation has concluded its Unit Stacks sub-step, its leaders C. Fortifying a City
may continue play by going on campaign during the Campaigns sub- • Fortifying a City costs 15 during the Administration Phase’s
step. Purchases step.
• Leaders have a Campaign value ranging from 0 to 3 indicated on
their counters (lower right). This is the number of campaigns he can D. Non-fortified Cities Special Rules
go on. • A Barbarian nation may easily conquer non-fortified cities thanks to
• If a nation has many leaders, they are activated in any order desired. its leader’s Barbarian terror effect (→ XXIV.B).
The campaigns of different leaders may not be interleaved.
• At the start of each of his campaigns, a leader and his stack may be → Turns 4 and 5 (425–450 AD)
redeployed anywhere within connected friendly territory, at no cost. • During these two turns, non-fortified cities inflict a special siege
• A Barbarian nation can never move its horde during a campaign as it penalty of –1 when besieged (→ Time Table). This represents the
cannot be stacked with a leader. special defensive effort that was undertaken during that period of
B. Movement Allowances frequent invasions.
• A leader may collect or drop off units as desired during his campaign
movement, as long as movement allowances and stacking limits are
observed.
• Units from nearby provinces can move into a province with a leader
to join his stack and move with him, as long as each unit never
exceeds its own movement allowance.
• No other unit may move during a leader’s campaign.
• Basically, a campaign allows a leader, who has already moved and
battled in his nation’s Units Stacks sub-step, to move and battle with
the same units again (and potentially again, and again) as long as
the latter remain with him. XXIV SIEGES
A. Overview
• If a stack finds itself in an empty enemy province with a city
(including once any enemy units have fled, have been overrun, or
have been defeated), the attacker must either move out, retreat, or
lay a siege.
• A siege is necessary even if the city is non-fortified.
• If the attacker cannot take the city, they must raise the siege and
retreat (→ XX.L).
• If the siege is successful, the city is taken and may be looted.
• The siege resolution process also appears on the map.
B. Barbarian Terror
• When a Barbarian leader moves, a wake of terror
precedes him and may inspire a non-fortified city to
XXIII FORTIFIED CITIES surrender without a fight.
• The non-fortified city surrenders if a D2 check is passed, otherwise
A. Overview it resists.
• Fortified cities show a wall icon around them on the map. • If the city resists, the Barbarian leader’s stack must either move out,
• All capitals (present or future) are fortified. retreat, or lay siege as usual.
• If the city surrenders and the Barbarian leader wants to loot it, he
must stop his movement.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 25

C. Siege Resolution The Visigoth leader Fritigernus decides not to assault, as he wants to
• The leader’s combat bonus provides a number of re-rolls preserve his army. He suffers a penalty of –1 to his D10 because there is
during siege resolution. a Roman fleet in the Mare Aegeum, adjacent to the harbor of Athenae—
• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers: supplying the city.
o +1 Assault ordered: Besieger takes 2 hits to receive bonus To succeed, a 7+ is needed. Fritigernus has a combat bonus of 2, giving
o +1 Civilized besieger him 2 re-rolls. He rolls 3 D10 and gets 3, 9, and 1, adjusted to 2, 8, and
o –1 Nomadic besieger (until the end of turn 9) 0. The second die is ≥7 → the city falls!
o +1 Besieged is In Decline (single side; +2 if doubled) The Visigoths loot Athenae (a level 2 city) and receive 2 + 2 pillage
o –? Wall value (fortified city) –2 to –4 (–1 for Roma) markers. These bring an extra 3 , for a total loot of 5 . A single face-
o –1 Non-fortified city (turns 4 and 5) down pillage marker is put on Athenae to indicate its looted status.
o –1 Coastal city with a city-friendly naval stack off-shore
E. Dismantling the Walls
(voided if an assault is ordered)
• Result < 7: The siege fails. The besieger must retreat. • When a fortified city is captured, the conqueror may decide to tear
• Result ≥ 7: The city falls and is taken. If it was a capital, remove the down its walls.
marker: it will be redeployed on the following turn. The city may be • If so decided, the fortification marker on the city is flipped to its non-
looted at the conqueror’s option. fortified side (it can be removed if the city printed on the map
• Leader’s campaign: A siege may be maintained (after failing a first matches this new state of affairs).
time) by leaving one unit in the besieged city’s province; this leaves • Fortifications can be rebuilt during the Purchases step of a later turn.
the leader free to act elsewhere for the rest of his campaign. A siege • Exception: A capital always remains fortified.
die roll check will be made during each subsequent campaign of that
leader this activation, even if he is not present (no re-rolls, however).
If unsuccessful by the end of his campaigns, the besiegers retreat
normally.

XXV SEA MOVEMENT & WARFARE

A. Fleets
• Fleets are always in sea zones.
• Each fleet may move up to 4 sea
D. Looting a City zones per activation, but can never be
• When a city is looted, the pillaging nation receives a booty of 2 more than 2 sea zones away from a
and draws as many pillage markers as the city level. coastal city controlled by their nation.
• Looting a Kingdom’s capital generates an extra • Fleets must be combined into naval stacks consisting of a maximum
5 ; looting an Empire’s capital generates an of 2 fleet units. A nation may have 2 naval stacks in the same sea
extra 10 . zone only if it brings in a third fleet (e.g. Byzantium may place
4 fleets in Mare Aegeum, in two naval stacks of 2 fleets each).
• Pillage markers provide from 1 to 3 (the
average is slightly less than 2 ). • A naval stack may drop off fleets and continue moving. It may also
pick up fleets along the way.
• Some markers have secondary event effects, shown as an event
number on a scroll. If the event is public (red scroll, i.e. #26: Famine, • Any number of nations may coexist in the same sea zone: naval
#32: Heresy, #51: Revolt, #56: Scarcity), it is resolved immediately battles are not automatic.
and then put back in the reserve. • Naval stacks may not flee.
• If it is “private” (brown scroll, e.g. #23: Dice, #48: Reaction, etc.), the B. Naval Interception
pillaging player keeps the marker to play it later, as if it were an
• When a naval stack of the active nation is in the same sea zone as
event card (→ Events Player Aid). an enemy one, either one may attempt naval interception in order to
• Two markers have a secondary Usurper calamity effect (Usurpator). trigger a naval battle. The inactive nation declares first. Intercepting
If the drawing nation is Barbarian, it is ignored. If it is Civilized, it fleets do not move.
occurs automatically if In Decline, otherwise it occurs only on a roll of • If the interceptor controls all the sea zone’s coastal cities, the naval
0 on a D10 (→ Calamities Player Aid). interception succeeds automatically. Otherwise, a D2 check must be
• Once the pillage markers have been resolved, put a single new one, passed.
drawn without looking at its face value, face-down on the city. The • During a nation’s Military phase activation, each naval stack (of any
city cannot be looted again until the marker is removed (at the end of nation) can declare an interception attempt or be the target of one
its nation’s next Income step → XIV.I). just once.
• A looted city brings only ½ in income to its new controller in the o Exception: A naval stack that executes a second naval transport
next Administration Phase, whatever its actual level. may be intercepted a second time, possibly by the same stack.
Example: On turn 2, the Visigoths invade Graecia and reach Athenae, a
non-fortified city. Checking the Barbarian terror effect, they roll a die, but
the result is odd, meaning no effect… Athenae resists and the Visigoths
decide to lay siege in order to capture the city.
26 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl
C. Naval Battle E. Amphibious Landing
• A naval interception is required to trigger a naval battle. Interception • This is the action of moving by sea from a friendly coastal province
and the ensuing battle occur out-of-sequence, as part of the active into an enemy or empty coastal province.
naval stack’s movement. • The land and naval stack movement allowances are expended
• A naval battle is between a single naval stack on either side, even if whether the landing succeeds or fails.
a second stack is present. • An amphibious landing is a naval transport to which is added a sea
• A naval battle is resolved as a land battle, except that there is no risk die roll check, resolved before any interception attempts.
archery round. o Exception: There is no sea risk die roll when a Barbarian nation
• No combat modifiers apply, unless mandated by an event or special invades Britannia or if its units have the amphibious ( ) attribute
rule (→ Nation Cards). (e.g. the Vikings).
o In the Mediterranean and Pontus Euxinus, if one side controls • There is just one roll regardless of the number of sea zones crossed
all of the coastal cities of the sea zone where the battle takes or of the number of land units and naval stacks involved.
place, it gains 2 re-rolls. • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
o Rome, Byzantium: Their elite fleets may take two hits—the first o –2 unless the nation controls a city on the same coast as the
hit flips them. target province and coastal to the last sea zone crossed
• A naval battle is won by the side that eliminates the other one or, o +1 if landing on a Mediterranean or Pontus Euxinus coast
barring that, inflicts more hits. A draw is possible. Neither side may (Romans and Byzantines only)
retreat. o ±? Storm or Expert Navigation event
• A leader can be assigned to a naval stack in order to give it • Result < 5: The landing fails.
additional rerolls; he is eliminated if his entire stack is lost. • Result ≥ 5: The landing succeeds, subject to naval interception.
• A naval battle can be refused; the refusing side is then deemed to
Example: An amphibious landing is launched by the Romans across
have lost. If the active naval stack refuses battle, its movement ends.
Mare Mauretanicum from Cartaginensis into Caesarea. The city of
If the inactive naval stack refuses battle, the controlling player
Saldae is enemy-held. The D10 suffers a –1 (–2 +1) unless Hippo
transfers 1 VP to their opponent.
Regius has become a city (an unbuilt port city site does not count) and is
friendly. The target province (Caesarea) and Tingis are on different
coasts (S. Gaditanus for Tingis). Several sea zones have just one coast
(e.g. Pontus Euxinus).
• Once the landing has “succeeded”, an opponent could declare a
naval interception and thus possibly prevent some or all of the units
from landing.
D. Naval Transport
• A nation’s land units may cross up to 2 sea zones by transport on a Example: The army from Carthago Nova consists of 3 legions and 2
naval stack. auxiliaries under Stilicho (stacking bonus +2). If the Roman naval stack
• Transport can only be made between friendly coastal provinces (a in M. Mauretanicum is reduced to a single fleet by enemy naval
land stack can never end its move in a sea zone). interception, only 3 of the units will land in Caesarea.
• A friendly naval stack must be present in each intervening sea zone. F. Blockade of Strait
• A fleet can carry up to 3 land units (and 1 leader) during a transport. • A naval stack may blockade the passage of a strait, in order to
The leader’s stacking bonus does not apply. prevent enemy land stacks from crossing there. The blockade will
• A naval stack may make a maximum of 2 transports during its stand even if a naval stack friendly to the land stack is also present
nation’s activation. in the same sea.
• The transport consumes 1 pace per sea zone for the land units and • To free the passage, the hindered nation (or its ally) must eliminate
1 pace for each naval stack used. the blockading stack, or a friendly nation (i.e. a federate or an ally’s
• A land stack may move before and after naval transport. federate) must do so earlier in the turn.
• A land stack may make only one naval transport per nation activation
or campaign. XXVI ALLIANCES
• A Nomad Barbarian nation may never use naval transport. This
restriction does not apply when they are mercenaries (→ XXVII.B, A. Overview
XXVIII.C, XXIX.D) or auxiliaries (→ XV.B). • An alliance allows two nations to join forces in order to achieve
Example: A cavalry stack with a leader (movement allowance of 5) could common objectives. It differs from Foedus (→ XXVIII) and vassalage
move from Arvernia to friendly Septimania (1 pace), then cross Sinus (→ XXIX) in that the two nations are nominally equal partners. In
Gallicus and Mare Mauretanicum (each of these sea zones holding a Invasions, it occurs as a result of the Alliance diplomacy card
friendly fleet) to land in friendly Utica (2 land paces; each fleet consumes (→ XXX.B) or of the Alliance or Barbarian Coalition Events.
1 pace). The stack would then have two paces left but could not use B. Mechanics
naval transport a second time.
• Neither nation involved may already be a federate, a client, or a
• The player must declare each naval transport to allow enemy fleets vassal.
to attempt a naval interception (→ XXV.B) in the sea zones o Goths: The “alliance” of the Visigoths and Ostrogoths
involved. (→ Goths: A Player Aid) is merely a perpetual mercenary-
• If the interception succeeds and the active player refuses battle, the exchange treaty. It does not prevent either nation from
transport is cancelled. concluding an alliance.
• If they do not refuse battle but their naval stack is diminished or
eliminated, transported units are lost accordingly. For example, a
naval stack transporting 5 units is intercepted and loses one of its
two fleets: two units (5 minus 3) are lost with the sunk fleet.
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 27
• While the alliance holds, the two nations activate together, on the C. Recovery
later of the two nations’ activations. • If an inactive independent minor Kingdom suffers losses, it rebuilds
• The two nations and their federates are mutually friendly (→ XII.D). during the Reinforcements step (activating as the oldest Kingdom if it
The two nations’ clients and vassals are mutually neutral. matters). If its capital was looted, the face-down pillage marker is
• The alliance expires if either party is federated, made into a client, or removed at the end of the subsequent income step and its capital
submitted. redeployed. Otherwise it recovers its units randomly, one per turn.
• Control of provinces is shared when the controlling stack includes Once at full strength, it restores (unflips) one random elite unit per
units of both nations. Consequent income and VPs are equally split. turn if it has any.
• When the alliance expires or is broken, stacks in shared provinces
D. Release from Clientele
must split apart, with one side retreating.
o The numerically inferior force retreats. • A client is released from its clientele if its patron’s capital is
o In case of a tie, make a D2 check: if passed, the younger nation conquered.
retreats; if failed, the older one.

XXVII CLIENTELE
• Armenia, Colchis, lberia, and Mauretania are independent Minor
Kingdoms at the beginning of the game. Other Minor Kingdoms may
appear as the game progresses, such as the Gallo-Romans,
successors to the Western Roman Empire in Gallia.
A. Client States
• Independent Minor Kingdoms (IMKs), whether inactive or not, can
become clients of an active Kingdom or Empire, their patron. In
exchange for paying a tribute (usually 2 ) and lending a XXVIII FOEDUS
mercenary, the client retains its independence and is assured of the
patron’s neutrality. Markers (Cliens) are provided as reminders. Designer’s note: A Foedus is a contract between an Empire (or
• Clients are neutral with respect to their patron, its allies, and Kingdom) and a Barbarian nation. By this unequal agreement, the
dependents (vassals, federates, and other clients) of both (→ XII.D). Barbarian nation (hereafter the “federate”) recognizes itself as a
• The patron receives half the VP for all the territory of a client, as if it "subject" of the Empire. This subjection is mostly a diplomatic fiction, the
shared control with an ally. Foedus best considered as a form of non-aggression pact.
• Details of each IMK are given in the player aids (→ Romans: R–T A. Overview
and Byzantines: S–U Player Aids).
• A Foedus is a voluntary agreement concluded between
• Inactive IMKs never attack and have no Treasury or Age markers. an Empire (the federator) and a Barbarian nation (the
Active ones (the Britons, Gallo-Romans, and Cappadocians) operate federate).
as normal player-controlled nations.
• An Empire can offer only 1 Foedus per turn. To acquire more
• If the IMK’s capital (if it has one) is conquered by a Civilized nation, it federates, it must use Foedus diplomacy cards. A Kingdom may
“submits” not as a vassal, but as a client. A Barbarian conqueror only acquire a Barbarian federate with that diplomacy card.
submits the Kingdom normally, as a vassal.
• Within a given turn, the offer must be made no later than the
beginning of the Military Phase activation of the would-be federate.
o For the Foedus to be offered, the Empire must control
2 Civilized provinces, adjacent to each other, within the same
Area, one of which is adjacent to one of the Barbarian nation’s
provinces.
• If accepted, the Foedus takes effect when the Barbarian nation
activates, but only if the conditions mentioned above still hold.
B. Establishing the Foedus
• The federator cedes as Foedus to the Barbarian federate 2 Civilized
provinces (adjacent to each other, within the same Area, one of
B. The Client Mercenary which is adjacent to one of the Barbarian nation’s provinces).
• The horde of the federate is immediately redeployed to one of the
• IMKs always lend 1 mercenary, chosen at random, to their patron— two provinces of the Foedus. So are as many of its units as the
but only as long as they are at full strength (→ XXVII.C). stacking limits of the provinces allow, ignoring any federator units.
• The patron nation redeploys it to any province it controls, at the • The federator must then evacuate (retreat) its units in excess of the
beginning of its Military Phase activation. Stacking limits apply. stacking limits (if any) from the Foedus provinces. It may also
• At the end of its patron’s Military Phase activation, the mercenary is evacuate any or all of the units not in excess. The federator can
redeployed to its Kingdom (if it hasn’t been eliminated). redeploy the evacuated units to any or all of the provinces vacated
• The mercenary is treated by the patron as one of its own for by the federate.
stacking, movement, and combat purposes for the duration of its
Military Phase activation.
• Should it become important to distinguish the mercenary from the
client’s other units (for instance, if the mercenary ends up alone),
turn its counter 180 degrees.

28 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

C. The Federate Mercenary G. Breach of Foedus
• The federate chooses 1 unit to lend to its federator. This mercenary • The Foedus lasts from turn to turn. Only the federate is allowed to
is immediately redeployed to either the Caesar (Romans and attempt to breach it.
Byzantines only), the Emperor (for another Empire), the King (leader, • The federate may breach the Foedus on the turn immediately
for a Kingdom), or the capital. If stacking limits prevent all of these, it following its establishment, on its Military Phase activation.
is redeployed to a province of the federator’s choice. • It may breach the Foedus on a later turn’s Military Phase activation
• Unlike a client mercenary (→ XXVII.B), a federate mercenary is by passing a D2 check.
redeployed just once. • It may also breach the Foedus:
• If the mercenary is eliminated, the federate lends a new one on the o if a Usurper takes power within the Empire (this decision must
next turn’s Reinforcements step, redeployed as before. be announced immediately); or
• The mercenary is treated by the federator as one of its own for o if its federator’s capital is conquered or if the federator is
stacking, movement, and combat purposes. eliminated, goes bankrupt, or is submitted by another nation (this
• Should it become important to distinguish the mercenary from the can only happen to a Kingdom); or
federate’s other units (for instance, if the mercenary ends up alone), o by playing a Betrayal or Renaissance event.
turn its counter 180 degrees.
→ Breach Effects
D. The Federator
• When the federate breaches the Foedus, it takes control of its
• Each turn, starting with the one during which the Foedus takes effect Foedus provinces (including their cities).
and for as long as the Foedus lasts, the federator pays a tribute of • Any co-located federator units may either stay (and fight, as
3 to its federate. defenders), or be evacuated (retreated) immediately.
• The federate’s units and horde are considered to be the federator’s • The former federate recovers control of all units lent to its federator.
units for control and stacking purposes. They are immediately redeployed to the horde’s province
• A Kingdom federator gets the province income (which the federate (temporarily ignoring stacking limits if need be).
can’t collect anyway) for the federate-controlled Foedus provinces
only.
• An Empire federator controls the federate-controlled Foedus
provinces (only). Area control is resolved accordingly.
• Either type of federator also gets the VP for those provinces.
• The federator is allowed to move and station units freely within the
federate provinces, as much as stacking limits allow.
• It may not voluntarily denounce the Foedus.
E. The Federate (Barbarian)
• Federates are friendly with respect to their federator, its allies, and
the federates of both (→ XII.D). They are neutral with respect to the
vassals and clients of both.
• The federate continues to receive reinforcements as dictated by the
Time Table.
• It must maintain control of its Foedus provinces.
• It must keep its horde within its Foedus provinces. XXIX SUBMISSION (VASSALAGE)
• It is not allowed to found a Kingdom (the transition die roll check is
A. Overview
cancelled).
• It may not submit other nations. • A nation (Barbarian, Kingdom, or Empire) may vanquish another
• It earns 3 VP for its Foedus provinces each turn (even if it loses one nation and force it to submit—unless that nation is an Empire.
of them). Empires never submit.
• A submitted nation becomes the vassal of its suzerain and pays a
F. Multiple Foedus (Foedera) tribute to them each turn. Markers (Ambactus) can be used as
• An Empire (or Kingdom) can, if it so wishes, offer another Foedus to reminders.
a Barbarian nation that is already its federate. • Submission is done by force. A nation cannot submit voluntarily: it
• This implies ceding a further two provinces to the federate, and must be attacked and defeated. Exception: → IX.B
increases the tribute paid to the federate accordingly. • If a vassal is forced into submission by another nation, it changes
• The federate scores an additional 3 VP per turn as a consequence. suzerains.
• In return, the federate must now lend an additional mercenary to its
federator.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 29

B. Submitting Barbarians E. The Suzerain
• In order to capture a horde and submit it, a nation must eliminate all • Upon winning the submission battle, the suzerain receives half the
Barbarian units accompanying it. vassal’s Treasury (if a Barbarian nation) or has the opportunity of
o If at least one Barbarian unit survives and retreats, the horde looting its capital (if a Kingdom).
retreats with it instead of submitting. • The suzerain (even a Barbarian one) receives a tribute of 1 from
o Reminder: A horde counts as 1 unit when defending in a battle, its vassal during the income step of every turn. This is gained
but cannot be eliminated, only captured. even if the vassal is broke.
• If the defeated nation had any Treasury, it reduces its Treasury to • The suzerain receives VP for all of a vassal’s territory as if it were
half of what it was , the remainder going to its new suzerain. controlled by its own units.
• Nomad Barbarians may more easily submit non-nomadic
F. The Vassal
Barbarian nations, but only if the attack takes place in a Barbarian
Area. The target horde then cannot retreat if defeated, so the • Vassals are neutral with respect to their suzerain, its allies, and the
Nomads need only win the battle to submit it. dependents (federates, clients, and other vassals) of both (→ XII.D).
o When Nomad Barbarians submit a horde, they draw a random • A Barbarian vassal receives no more than 1 unit as reinforcement
event card from the losing nation’s hand (include event markers each turn, regardless of what the Time Table indicates.
in the hand). • The vassal of a nomadic suzerain must remain in the same Area as
o Battle Recovery exception: Nomad Barbarians get to choose the its suzerain’s horde or in an adjacent Area.
unit(s) recovered by their new vassal when they submit a non- • A vassal is free to increase its territory by the usual means.
nomadic horde in a Barbarian area (→ XX.K). • A vassal may not submit other nations nor get federates.
• Submission to a defender: This happens if a horde accompanies an • The vassal receives only half of its normal VP.
attacking stack (during an invasion) and the stack loses so badly that • The vassal pays its tribute to its suzerain from its Treasury if it has
the horde must be assigned a hit (or the attacking stack is wiped out one.
against Nomads in a Barbarian Area). • A Kingdom vassal collects its income normally.
• When a horde submits, the suzerain must immediately evacuate
(retreat from) the horde’s province and any other provinces where G. Return to Freedom
the suzerain had battles awaiting resolution against the vassal. • The vassal may return to freedom in the following cases:
o The suzerain is itself submitted or federated by another nation.
C. Submitting a Kingdom o The suzerain is eliminated.
• The Kingdom must be reduced to no more than 3 provinces and its o The suzerain’s capital is conquered.
capital must be conquered (and optionally looted). o The vassal plays a Betrayal or Renaissance event.
• If the Kingdom has no capital (e.g. the Euskaldun Kingdom
→ Nomadic Suzerain
→ Romans: T Player Aid), a Kingdom leader (if any) and its stack
must be entirely eliminated instead. In that case, a Pillage marker • A nomadic suzerain’s vassal can attempt a rebellion each turn,
can be drawn (resolving any public event this may trigger), starting with the turn after its submission. This is announced at the
representing the kinglet’s Treasure. start of its Military Phase activation.
• When a Kingdom submits, the suzerain must immediately evacuate • The rebellion succeeds if a D2 check is passed.
(retreat from) the vassal’s capital province (if any) and any other • If the rebellion succeeds, the vassal mercenary is not redeployed to
provinces where the suzerain had battles awaiting resolution against its horde: it remains under the suzerain’s control until its elimination.
the vassal. • If it fails, the vassal loses 5 VP and 1 unit of its choice.
D. The Vassal Mercenary
• The vassal immediately lends 1 unit of its choice from among its
surviving units to its suzerain as a mercenary.
o If the suzerain is Barbarian, the unit is redeployed to its horde.
o Otherwise it is redeployed to the suzerain’s capital province.
o If stacking limits prevent this, it is redeployed to a province of the
suzerain’s choice.
• This is a one-time obligation; once the mercenary is eliminated, the
vassal does not have to lend a replacement (unlike a client or
federate).
• The mercenary is treated by the suzerain as one of its own for
stacking, movement, and combat purposes.
• Should it become important to distinguish the mercenary from the
vassal’s other units (for instance, if the mercenary ends up alone),
turn its counter 180 degrees.
→ Nomadic Suzerain
• The vassal lends a unit of the nomadic suzerain’s choice as a
mercenary. Further, when the mercenary is eliminated, the nomadic
suzerain receives a new one (still of its choice) from its vassal during
Reinforcements, redeployed as before.

30 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

 C. Treaty (Pactum) (1 card)
XXX DIPLOMACY
• The Treaty card forces the target nation to accept a
A. Overview one-turn non-aggression pact with the card-playing
nation.
• Diplomacy is limited in Invasions. All diplomatic agreements between
nations are conducted by means of diplomacy cards, except for the • The card-playing nation pays 5 to the target nation.
Foedus granted by Empires (→ XXVIII). • The card-playing nation chooses a province of the target nation,
subject to these conditions:
• The Diplomacy deck consists of 18 cards. Players draw diplomacy
o It cannot be the target nation’s capital or contain its horde.
cards during the Time Phase’s Diplomacy step.
o It cannot be a granary province ( ).
• Cards are drawn in order from youngest nation to oldest. If there are
not enough cards, then any subsequent draws for the older nations o It must be adjacent to the card-playing nation or an island
are lost. adjacent to a sea zone in which the card-playing nation has a
• Barbarian nations do not draw diplomacy cards. No Diplomacy is naval stack.
allowed or playable against or in favour of an invading Barbarian • The chosen province is evacuated by the target nation (its units
nation. retreat). If it has no other choice, it can temporarily overstack. The
• Each Kingdom draws as many cards as its leader’s diplomatic card-playing nation then redeploys at least one of its units to the
bonus: if it is zero, then it gets no cards. province.
• Each Empire draws 1 diplomacy card + as many cards as its • Once both parties have completed their military activations, the pact
leader’s diplomatic bonus (0 to 2 extra). expires.
• Players should be careful of keeping their nations’ diplomacy cards D. Marriage (Matrimonium) (2 cards)
separate from each other.
• The Marriage card forces the target nation to hold a
• Diplomacy cards (except Mercenary, Graft, and Nothing) can be royal wedding with one of your princesses.
played no later than the beginning of the Military Phase activation
• The card-playing nation pays 2 to the target nation
of the earlier of the two nations involved (the card-playing one and
(as dowry).
the target one).
• The target nation gains 2 VP if it does not attack the card-playing
• Upon reaching the Military Phase’s End of Diplomacy step, any nation during its next activation. The two nations remain hostile.
unused diplomacy cards are discarded. Each discarding nation
• The target nation lends one mercenary of its choice to the card-
receives 1 in compensation. The discards are then shuffled back
playing nation for its next activation. The card-playing nation
into the diplomacy card deck.
redeploys the unit to a province it controls (→ XXX.H for restrictions
• A card that requires a payment cannot be played if the money is
on whom the unit will fight).
not available in the card-playing nation’s Treasury.
• At the end of the card-playing nation’s activation, the mercenary—if it
B. Alliance (Unio) (3 cards) has survived—is redeployed by its target nation to a province under
• The card-playing nation offers a one-turn alliance its control.
(→ XXVI) to the target nation, which cannot be a E. Tribute (Tributus) (2 cards)
federate or vassal.
• The Tribute card forces the target nation to accept a
• If the target nation is controlled by another player, they decide one-turn non-aggression pact with the card-playing
whether to accept or to decline the offer.
nation.
• If controlled by the same player as the card-playing nation, the
• The card-playing nation pays 10 to the target nation.
alliance is accepted only if a D2 check is passed.
• The two nations become mutually neutral.
• When the two nations’ Military Phase activation ends, so does the
• Once both parties have completed their military activations, the pact
alliance.
expires.
• If the target nation is an independent minor Kingdom, the alliance
is accepted only if a D2 check is passed. F. Foedus (2 cards)
o The independent minor Kingdom becomes a client of the card- • The Foedus card forces a Barbarian nation to accept a
playing nation—usually on a permanent basis (→ Romans: R–T Foedus with the card-playing nation, becoming its
and Byzantines: S–U Player Aids). federate.
o If the independent minor Kingdom pays a tribute, the card should • For the prerequisites and consequences of Foedus, → XXVIII.
be played at the beginning of the Administration Phase in order • This card is the only way an Empire can acquire more than one
for the tribute to be received on the same turn. federate per turn, and is also the only way a Kingdom can acquire a
• Alternatively, the card can be used to break an existing alliance (or federate at all.
clientele relationship) between two target nations, one of which could
be the card-playing nation. The target alliance or clientele is broken if G. Graft (3 cards)
a D2 check is passed. • The Graft card lifts a siege.
• The card-playing nation pays 1 to the besieging
nation.
• The card-playing nation need not be the one besieged (the card
could be used to lift the siege of a third nation’s city).

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 31

H. Mercenary (4 cards) C. Heresies
• The Mercenary card forces a Barbarian nation to lend • Heresies happen as a result of an event or of a calamity and affect
1 mercenary to the card-playing nation for the latter’s an entire Area.
next activation. • Pagans and Arian Barbarians are immune to them.
• The target nation’s horde must be adjacent or within • A capital’s Area is immune to the Heresy calamity but not the Heresy
one of the Areas controlled by the card-playing nation. event.
• The card-playing nation pays 3 to the target nation. • Heresies have an aggravating effect on the Intolerance and Usurper
• The card-playing nation redeploys the unit to a province it controls. calamities, and make revolts harder to subdue.
• The mercenary will not fight against its own nation. Should such a • They last 2 turns. A Heresy + (Haeresis) marker is placed on the
battle be set up, it will desert and switch sides at the start of the affected Area when it breaks out. At the Heresies age sub-step of the
battle (i.e. go to the opposing side). Neither can it be counted when next Time phase, the marker is flipped to its Heresy – side then, on
resolving an overrun or passage in force against its own nation. the turn after that, it is removed (→ VI.F).
• Mercenaries from the same nation will fight each other, as long as • An Area is simultaneously of the religions of each nation present in it.
they do it at the behest of nations other than their own. Care must therefore be taken to choose and place the Heresy
markers such that the affected religion is clearly identified. To help
I. Nothing (1 card)
with this, the Heresy markers are religion colour-coded: yellow for
• The Nihil (“Nothing”) card is a decoy and has no effect Mazdaist heresies, white for Monophysite heresies, and black for
at all. other heresies (Arius, Donatius, and Pelagius).
• The Oriens and Aegyptus Areas are under a permanent heresy,
Monophysitism. This is so well-entrenched that it is treated as a
separate religion by the game. A Monophysite Area that suffers
heresy can be understood as being agitated by zealous proselytes.
• The Visigoths and Ostrogoths (collectively, the Goths) are Arians, a
second Christian heresy that is also treated as a separate religion by
the game. They are immune to the Heresy event and calamity (like
Pagans) but only as long as they remain Barbarians.
• Heresy is a relative thing: Once a capital becomes heretical (with
respect to other nations of the same religion), its orthodox provinces
XXXI RELIGION become heretical in its eyes. If a capital is in a heretical Area and its
provinces in another Area are also heretical, then there is religious
A. Religion and Civilization harmony between them. This explains the phrasing of the rules
• At the start of the game, there are five religions: Catholicism (☧), concerning the expense incurred by heresy (→ XIV.G) and the die
Monophysitism (☧), Arianism (☧), Mazdaism (♨), and Paganism modifier to revolt subdual (→ XVI.F).
(☾). Christianity is synonymous with Catholicism.
o Historically, Monophysitism and Arianism are Christian heresies.
In Invasions, they are treated as full-fledged religions.
• Both of the Roman Empires (Rome and Byzantium), the Britons, the
Armenians, the Colchidians, and the Mauritanians are Christians
(Catholics).
• The Oriens and Aegyptus Areas are Monophysites.
• The Persians and Iberians are Mazdaists.
• The Goths (Ostrogoths and Visigoths) are Arians.
• All Barbarians other than the Goths are Pagans.
B. Conversion to Catholicism
• A non-Catholic Barbarian nation (Pagan or Arian) can decide to
convert to Catholicism at the start of its Administration Phase, before
Administration cards are resolved.
• At that moment or at the same instant of a later turn, the controlling
player receives a one-time VP bonus equivalent to the total income
value of all the non-heretical Catholic provinces it currently controls,
provided that VP bonus is listed on the nation’s card (e.g. the
Alemanni or Angles but not the Alans or Avars).
• When this happens, the player controlling Roma (even once razed)
also receives half of that VP bonus. This represents the role of the
Pope.

32 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

XXXII DRAMATIS PERSONAE XXXIII GAZETTEER
A. Germanic Nations Names in red are from the Into the East map extension.
Alemanni Alamanni A. Sea Zones
Angles (later Anglo-Saxons) ................................... Angli (Anglosaxones) Name Monopoly Value Name Monopoly Value
Bavarians Baiovarii Mare Adriaticum 1 Oceanus Atlanticus 0
Burgundians ................................................................................Burgundi Mare Aegeum 3 Oceanus Britannicus 1
Franks Franci Mare Aralis 0 Oceanus Caledonicus 0
Gepids ......................................................................................... Gepidae Mare Caspium 0 Oceanus Germanicus 0
Mare Mauretanicum 1 Oceanus Hibernicus 0
Goths (Ostro- and Visi-) (☧) Gothi (Ostro-, Visi-) Mare Nostrum Orientalis 3 Oceanus Indianicus 3
Herules .............................................................................................Heruli Mare Rubrum 1 Oceanus Occidendalis 0
Jutes Iuti Mare Siculum 2 Pontus Euxinus 2
Lombards ................................................................................ Langobardi Mare Suebicum 0 Propontis 0
Saxons (later Anglo-Saxons) Saxones (Anglosaxones) Mare Tyrrheneum 2 Sinus Botnicus 0
Suebi ................................................................................................ Suebi Sinus Gaditanus 1
Vandals ......................................................................................... Vandali Sinus Gallicus 1
Sinus Persicus 3
B. Nomadic Barbarians B. Barbarian Areas
Alans Alani Name Terrain Income City Level Notes
Avars ................................................................................................. Avari
Hephthalites Ephthalitae → ARABIA Area Income 2 (2½)
Huns .................................................................................................Hunni Arabia Deserta Desert 0 Bassora 0 S. Persicus
Khazars Chazari
Hijaz Desert 1 Iatrippa 0 M. Rubrum
Kushans ....................................................................................... Cossani
Lachmidaria Desert 0
C. Raiders Litus Arabicus Desert 0
Arabs Arabes Mazania Desert ½ Mazun 0 O. Indianicus
Blemmyes ................................................................................ Blemmyes Nabatene Desert ½
Hibernians (a.k.a. Irish) Hiberni
Palmyrene Desert ½
Picts ................................................................................................... Picti
Vikings Viccingi → ASIA CENTRALIS Off-map transit box
D. Romans and Successors (☧) → BALTICUM Area Income 3
Africano-Romans (ex-Limites) Africani (Africano-Romani)
Brito-Romans (ex- Limites) .................................... Britani (Brito-Romani) Albarussia Forest ½ Miliniska 0
Byzantines (a.k.a. Eastern Romans) Orientali (Romani Orientalis) Estia Forest ½
Cappadocians (☧) IMK 1 ........................................................ Cappadocii Lethigallia Forest 1 Riga 0 S. Botnicus
Gallo-Romans (ex- Limites) Galli (Gallo-Romani) Novogardia Forest ½ Nemogardas 0 S. Botnicus,
Hispano-Romans (ex- Limites)........................ Hispani (Hispano-Romani)
Romans (Western, Eastern) Romani (Occidentalis, Orientalis) Tueria Forest ½
E. Slavic Nations
→ BARBARUM Area Income 4
Aestii Aestii
Sklaves........................................................................................ Sclaveni Galicia Forest ½ Cracovia 0
Venedae Venedae Gothia Forest ½
Lituania Forest ½
F. Other Nations
Polonia Forest ½
Armenians (☧) IMK Armenii
Pomerania Marsh 0
Berbers.......................................................................................... Barbari
Prussia Forest ½
Britons (☧) IMK Brittones
Pripet Marsh 0
Colchidians (☧) IMK ...................................................................... Colchi
Silesia Forest ½
Ghassanids (☧) IMK Ghassanides
Göktürks ( ) ................................................................................. Turcae Teutonia Forest ½
Guptas (ૐ) Guptae Velete Forest ½
Iberians (♨) IMK .............................................................................Hiberi → CALEDONIA HIBERNIA Area Income 3
Kidarites Kidarae
Lakhmids (☧) IMK...................................................................Lakhmides Caledonia Mountain ½ Scone 0 O. Germanicus
Mauritanians (☧) IMK Mauritanii (Mauri) Conacia Forest ½
Persians (♨) .................................................................................Persae Dal Riata Mountain ½
Scots Scoti Gallovidia Mountain ½
Sogdians IMK ........................................................................... Sogdianae Lagenia Forest ½ Eblana 0 O. Hibernicus
Momonia Marsh 0
Ultonia Forest ½
1 IMK : Independent Minor Kingdom
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 33
Name Terrain Income City Level Notes Name Terrain Income City Level Notes
→ CAUCASUS Area Income 7 → SCANDINAVIA Area Income 3
Armenia Mountain 2 Artaxata 1F Finlandia Forest ½
Armenia Minor Mountain 1 Gothlandia Forest ½
Azeria Clear 1 Iutia Marsh 0
Colchis Forest 1 Phasis 0 Pontus Euxinus Norvegia Mountain ½ Kaupang 0 O. Germanicus
Iberia Mountain 1 Ganzac 1F Scania Forest ½
Lacyzia Mountain 1 Selandia Marsh ½ Hedeby 0 M. Suebicum
Sueonia Forest ½ Birka 0 M. Suebicum
→ DANUBIUS Area Income 4
Bohemia Forest ½ Praga 0 → SCYTHIA Area Income 2
Carpathia Mountain ½ Alania Steppe ½
Dacia Forest ½ Bolgar Steppe ½
Hunnia Steppe ½ Buda 0 Sarkil Steppe ½ Itil 0
Hypanis Steppe ½ Siraces Steppe 0
Moravia Forest ½ Terecia Desert 0
Tisia Steppe ½ Volga Steppe ½
Valachia Steppe ½
C. Civilized Areas
→ GERMANIA Area Income 4 Name Terrain Income City Level Notes
Agri Decumates Forest ½ → AEGYPTUS Area Income: Kingdom 12, Empire 9
Albis Forest ½
Aegyptus Clear 3 Memphis 2
Bavaria Forest ½ Monacum 0
Arcadia Steppe ½
Franconia Forest ½ Vadum Francorum 0
Cyrenaica Steppe ½ Cyrene 1 M. Siculum
Frisia Marsh 0
Delta Clear 3 Pelusium 0 M. Nostrum
Holsatia Marsh 0
Orientalis,
Oderus Forest ½ Berolinum 0
Rhenus Forest ½ Nilus Clear 3 Alexandria 3 M. Nostrum
Saxonia Forest ½ Orientalis,
Thuringia Forest ½ Sinai Desert 0
Thebais Clear 2 Thebae 1
→ MAURETANIA Area Income 2
→ AFRICA Area Income: Kingdom 9, Empire 6
Anti Atlas Mountain ½
Atlas Mountain ½ Africa Clear 3 Carthago 3 M. Siculum,
Aures Mountain ½ Caesarea Mountain ½
Blemmyes Desert 0 Mauritania Mountain ½
Libya Desert ½ Numidia Mountain 1
Sahara Desert 0 Saldae Clear 1 Saldae 1 M. Mauretanicum
Toaregia Desert 0 Tingitania Clear ½ Tingis 0 S. Gaditanus
Tripolitania Steppe ½ Leptis Magna 0 M. Siculum,
→ OXIA Area Income 3
Amyrgia Steppe 0 Utica Clear 2 Hippo Regius 0 M. Mauretanicum
Chorasmia Desert 0
Massagetae Steppe ½ → ASIA Area Income: Kingdom 8, Empire 7
Tarim Steppe 1 Tashkent 0 Bythinia Clear 1 Nicae 1
Sogdiana Clear 1 Marakanda 1 Cyprus Clear 1 Salamis 0 M. Nostrum
Transoxania Steppe ½ Orientalis
Lycia Mountain 1
→ SARMATIA Area Income 5
Lydia Clear 3 Ephesos 2 M. Aegeum
Abascia Steppe ½ Tanais 0 Pontus Euxinus Mysia Clear 2 Pergamon 2
Bosporus Mountain 1 Heraclea 1F Pontus Euxinus
Danapris Clear 1 Kiovia 0
Donetus Steppe ½
Pereaslavia Steppe ½
Scythica Steppe ½
Ucraina Steppe 1

34 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

Name Terrain Income City Level Notes Name Terrain Income City Level Notes
→ BRITANNIA Area Income: Kingdom 11, Empire 4 → GRAECIA Area Income: Kingdom 9, Empire 9
Bernicia Clear ½ Din Guarie 0 Achaia Mountain 2 Athenae 2 M. Aegeum
Cambria Mountain 1 Macedonia Clear 2 Thessalonika 2 M. Aegeum
Camulodunum Clear 2 Londinium 1 O. Britannicus Creta Mountain 1 Kydonia 0 M. Aegeum
Cantium Clear 1 Venta 0 Cyclades † Clear 1
Corinium Dobunorum Forest 1 Viroconium 0 Thessalia Mountain 1
Cumbria Clear 1 Thracia Clear 2 Constantinopolis 3F Propontis,
Dumnonia Mountain ½
Durnovaria Clear 1 Isca 0 → HISPANIA Area Income: Kingdom 13, Empire 5
Flavia Caesariensis Clear 1 Eboracum 1 Asturica Clear ½ Abula 0
Lindum Clear 1 Baetica Mountain 1 Illiberis 0
Maxima Caesariensis Clear 1 Balearica † Clear ½
Cantabria Mountain ½
→ CAPPADOCIA Area Income: Kingdom 6, Empire 6
Carpetania Clear 1 Toletum 1
Anatolia Steppe ½ Iconium 1 Cartaginensis Clear 1 Carthago Nova 1 M. Mauretanicum
Cappadocia Steppe 1 Castulum Steppe ½
Cilicia Mountain 2 Tarsus 1 M. Nostrum Celtiberia Mountain ½ Caesaraugusta 0
Orientalis Cuneus Clear ½
Paphlagonia Mountain 1 Emeritensis Steppe ½
Pontus Mountain 1 Trapezus 1F Pontus Euxinus Gallaecia Mountain ½ Bracara 0
Melitene Mountain ½ Melitene 1F Hispalensis Clear 2 Hispalis 1
→ GALLIA MERIDIONALIS Area Income: Kingdom 12, Empire 7 Lusitania Mountain ½ Scalabis 0
Osca Clear 1
Alpes Mountain ½
Piranaei Mountain ½
Aquitania Clear 2 Burdigala 0 O. Atlanticus,
Saguntum Mountain ½
Arvernia Mountain ½ Salmantica Mountain ½
Garumnus Clear 1 Tolosa 1 Tarraconensis Clear 1 Barcino 0 S. Gallicus
Helvetia Mountain ½
Liger Forest 1 Avaricum 1 → ILLYRIA Area Income: Kingdom 6, Empire 5
Provencia Mountain 1 Arelate 1 S. Gallicus Carnuntum Forest 1 Aquincum 1F
Rhodanus Clear 2 Lugdunum 1 Dalmatia Mountain 1
Septimania Clear 1 Narbo 1 Illyricum Mountain 1 Salonae 1 M. Adriaticum
Vasconia Clear 1 Istria Mountain 1
Vendeum Marsh ½ Noricum Mountain ½ Virunum 0
Vienna Clear 1 Pannonia Steppe 1 Sirmium 1F
→ GALLIA SEPTENTRIONALIS Area Income: Kingdom 11, Empire 5
Rhaetia Mountain ½ Castra Regina 0

Armoricum Clear ½ Darioritum 0 O. Atlanticus → INDIA Area Income: Kingdom 7, Empire 6

Austrasia Forest 1 Aquae Granni 0 Gandaria Mountain 1 Taxila 1
Belgae Clear 1 Indus Clear 2 Demetrias 1 O. Indianicus,
Burgondia Clear 1 Divio 0 ,
Flandria Marsh ½
Paradene Clear 1
Lotharingia Forest 1 Argentoratum 0
Panjab Clear 2 Sagala 2F
Neustria Clear 2 Parisius 1 Sattagydia Clear 1 Pattala 0
Lugdunus Forest ½ Rotomagus 0 O. Britannicus Thar Desert 0
Saliens Clear 1 Tornacum 0
Sequana Clear 1 Remorum 0 → INDIA MERIDIONALIS Off-map Kingdom & Empire Bonus
Treveria Forest 1 Treverum 2F India Meridionalis n/a 2
Venetum Clear ½
→ INDIA SEPTENTRIONALIS Off-map Kingdom & Empire Bonus
India Sept. n/a 2

† For game purposes, these two provinces have no internal waters (sea zones).
© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 35
Name Terrain Income City Level Notes Name Terrain Income City Level Notes
→ ITALIA Area Income: Kingdom 12, Empire 12 → PERSIA ORIENTALIS Area Income: Kingdom 5, Empire 3
Apulia Clear ½ Brundusium 0 M. Siculum Carmania Mountain 1 Hormuz 0 S. Persicus
Beneventum Mountain 1 Drangiana Mountain 1
Campania Clear 1 Neapolis 1 M. Tyrrheneum Gedrosia Mountain ½
Cisalpina Clear 2 Mediolanum 2 Persia Mountain 2 Pasargadae 1
Corsica Mountain ½ Sagartia Steppe ½
Latium Clear 1 Roma 3F → PERSIS Area Income: Kingdom 9, Empire 5
Liguria Mountain ½
Sardinia Clear ½ Cadusia Mountain ½
Sicilia Mountain 1 Syracusae 1 M. Siculum Elymais Mountain 2 Persepolis 1
Spoletum Clear 1 Ancona 0 M. Adriaticum Hyrcania Mountain ½ Rei 0
Taurinorum Clear 1 Pavia 0 Media Mountain 2 Ecbatana 1
Tuscia Clear 1 Pisae 0 M. Tyrrheneum Phraaspa Mountain 1
Umbria Marsh ½ Ravenna 2F M. Adriaticum [Rhagae Mountain 1 Qom 0 †]

Venetia Clear ½ Aquilea 1 Susiana Clear 1 Susa 1

Zagros Mountain 1
→ MESOPOTAMIA Area Income: Kingdom 12, Empire 9
→ PERSIS Off-map Kingdom & Empire Bonus (removed by Into the East)
Adiabene Steppe 1 Arbela 1
Akkad Steppe 2 Hatra 0 Persia Orientalis n/a 2
Artemita Clear 1 Dastgerd 1 D. Rivers
Assyria Steppe 2 Nisibis 1F Name Drains
Atropatene Mountain 1
Albis Germania
Babylonia Steppe 2 Perisabor 1F Baetis Hispania
Chaldea Clear 2 Ctesiphon 3F Bagradas Africa
Euphrates Steppe 1 Dura Europos 0 Cyrus Caucasus, Persis
Danapris Barbarum, Sarmatia
→ MOESIA Area Income: Kingdom 6, Empire 4 Danuvius Germania, Illyria, Danubius, Moesia
Donetus Sarmatia, Scythia
Epirus Mountain 1 Dyrrachium 1 M. Adriaticum
Durius Hispania
Dardania Mountain 1 Dvina Balticum
Moesia Inferior Mountain 1 Triaditsa 0 Euphrates Cappadocia, Oriens, Arabia, Mesopotamia
Moesia Superior Clear 1 Singidunum 1F Garumna Gallia Meridionalis
Naissus Mountain 1 Halys Cappadocia
Savus Steppe ½ Hypanis Danubius, Sarmatia
Tyras Marsh ½ Iaxartes Oxia
Iberus Hispania
→ ORIENS Area Income: Kingdom 8, Empire 8 Indus India, Persia Orientalis
Liger Gallia Meridionalis, Gallia Septentrionalis
Amida Steppe ½ Dara 1F Marisus Graecia
Coele Syria Steppe 1 Beroia 0 Manus Germania
Osroene Steppe ½ Edessa 1F Mosella Gallia Septentrionalis
Palestina Clear 2 Hierosolyma 1 Nemunas Balticum, Barbarum
Phoenicia Clear 2 Antiocheia 2 M. Nostrum Nilus Aegyptus
Oderus Barbarum, Germania
Orientalis
Oxus Oxia, Parthia
Syria Clear 2 Damascus 1 Padus Italia
→ PARTHIA Area Income: Kingdom 4, Empire 3
Pathissus Danubius
Rha Scythia
Arachosia Mountain ½ Rhenus Gallia Meridionalis, Germania, Gallia Septentrionalis
Areia Mountain ½ Aria 0 Rhodanus Gallia Meridionalis
Bactriania Clear 1 Bactra 1 Senora Gallia Septentrionalis
Kushania ‡ Steppe 0 Sabrina Britannia
Strymon Moesia, Graecia
Margiania Clear 1 Merv 0
Tagus Hispania
Parthia Sept. Mountain 1 Tus 0 Tamesa Britannia
Tesis Britannia
Tigris Persis, Mesopotamia
Vistula Barbarum

‡ On the main map, this province belongs to no Area. † This caravan is removed by Into the East.
36 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl
 Fleet ( ) – The naval equivalent of a land unit. Fleets remain in sea
XXXIV GLOSSARY zones and can engage in sea combat, including strait
interdiction and amphibious landing interception. They
Activation – Within the Military phase of each turn, each nation is
can also perform naval transport.
activated once during the Nations Activation step.
Foedus (Latin for “contract”—also meaning “abasing, submissive”—,
Advantage – A combat bonus enjoyed by one side or the other. This can
plural foedera, Latin pronunciation “foe-ay-doos”, plural
be strategic (straits, rivers, and ridges; forest, marsh, or
“foe-ay-day-rah”, English pronunciation “fee-duss”, plural
steppe terrain type) or tactical (having a greater number
“fee-duh-rah”) – A contract between an Empire or
of cavalry and/or heavy units than the adversary).
Kingdom (the federator) and a Barbarian nation in which
Alliance – Occurs as a result of a diplomacy card or an Event. The allied
the latter (the federate) recognizes itself as a "subject" of
nations activate together, on the older nation’s activation.
its federator. The federate holds provinces for its
The income and VPs of shared provinces are split
federator and lends it a mercenary, receiving tribute in
equally between them. They treat each other’s territory
compensation.
as friendly for movement and retreat. They stack and
Friendly – Allies and their federates are mutually friendly. A province is
battle as one nation.
friendly (to a nation’s units) if it is controlled by the active
Amphibious ( ) – An attribute of units that ignore river penalties during
nation (or a friendly nation) or if it is occupied by the
combat and sea risk die rolls during amphibious landings.
active nation (or by a friendly nation) without opposition
Archer ( or ) – Shoots first at the start of a battle (archery round),
fighting normally afterwards. (i.e. there are no neutral or enemy units in the province).
Area – A geographical grouping of provinces. An Area is either Barbarian Provinces with unresolved battles or sieges remain
or Civilized. hostile. A city is friendly if controlled or if it has been
Auxiliary – A Roman unit recruited from a Barbarian nation, as opposed successfully besieged.
to a mercenary. Auxiliaries belong to one of the Alamans, Heavy Unit ( ) – May gain a tactical advantage.
Alans, Burgundians, Gepids, Goths, Herules, Huns, Heresy – A doctrine held by a member of a religion at variance with
Mauritanians, or Vandals. established religious beliefs, especially dissension from
Barbarian(s) – The initial status of a nation. Barbarian nations eventually Roman Catholic dogma. In Invasions, heresies are the
become Kingdoms (exception: The Huns may become “same religion” but cause internal disputes.
an Empire directly). Horde – A sort of “mobile capital” specific to Barbarian nations.
Border – A separation between land provinces or sea zones, shown Horse Archer ( or ) – A unit that is both cavalry and an archer.
dashed on the map. Some land borders run along rivers Used by nomads mostly.
or ridges, giving a strategic advantage to the defenders. Hostile – A nation that is neither friendly nor neutral is hostile. A province
Campaign – A series of movement-and-combat activations of a stack led is hostile (to a nation’s units) if it is controlled by a hostile
by a Leader with a greater-than-zero campaign attribute. nation (except if empty) or if there is an unresolved battle
Capital – The city designated as the seat of a Civilized nation’s or siege. A city is hostile unless controlled.
government. It generates bonus income. Losing one’s Imperial Guards – See Custodes.
capital to another nation has dire consequences. Inactive Nation – A nation which does not activate during a turn (e.g. the
Cataphractae (singular Cataphracta) – Elite heavy horse archers of the Armenians, Sardes, or Sklaves). They have units on the
late Byzantine empire (turn 8 onward). map but do not attack, age, or track Treasuries. They do
Cavalry ( ) – May gain a tactical advantage. not earn VPs for their controlling player by themselves,
City – Urban settlements, sources of income for Civilized nations. An but may earn VPs for their patron, federator, or suzerain.
Empire’s control hinges on its cities. Some cities are Independent Minor Kingdom (IMK) – A minor Kingdom, often inactive
fortified. (e.g. the Armenians, Iberians, and Mauritanians). It is
Civilized nation – A Kingdom or Empire. usually the client of an Empire or a Kingdom, paying
Clibanarii – Persian elite heavy cavalry. The Latin word first designated tribute and lending a mercenary to its patron.
the pike-and-bow-wielding armoured crew of heavy Infantry ( ) – This is the basic land unit of almost all nations.
chariots, used against elephants. Invasion – The sudden apparition of a Barbarian nation into the game’s
Client – An independent minor Kingdom (IMK) that has a patron. Client world. During its invasion, the nation activates twice and
states usually pay a tribute to their patron and lend it a benefits from a few additional bonuses.
mercenary. They are otherwise neutral, often inactive. Kingdom ( ) – The intermediate status of a nation. Kingdoms
Collapse – The ultimate fate of Empires. eventually become Empires.
Control – Provinces and Areas may be controlled, which determines in Leader – The ultimate authority of a nation or of its army. Besides
large part whether they are friendly or not at any moment historic (named) leaders, there are intrinsic (unnamed)
during the Military phase. The nation in control gets the ‘default’ ones. Barbarian intrinsic leaders are known as
income and VPs. Rex ( ). Kingdom leaders also bear a , while
Custodes (Latin for ‘Guards’, singular Custos) – A double-elite ( ) empire leaders are marked . Empires may have
heavy infantry unit (Imperial Guards). army leaders ( ) in addition to their emperor.
Elite Unit ( ) – A tougher unit, capable of absorbing two hits before Limes (Latin for “limit”, plural limites, Latin pronunciation “lee-mess”,
being eliminated. A damaged elite unit ( ) is treated as plural “lee-mee-tess”, English pronunciation “lie-meez”,
a normal one until it is restored to full capability. Used plural “limit-ease”) – an unmovable fortified unit that
almost exclusively by Civilized nations. stops invasions at a border.
Mercenary – A unit belonging to one nation but fighting under another’s
Empire ( ) – The ultimate status of a nation. Empires eventually
control, either for payment (a tribute gained by its nation)
collapse.
or as a form of payment. A mercenary is either a client
Federate – (Foederatus in Latin) A nation that has concluded a Foedus
unit lent to its patron, a federate unit lent to its federator,
with its federator.
or a vassal unit lent to its suzerain.
Federator – A nation that has concluded a Foedus with its federate.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 37

Mountaineers ( ) – A unit that gains an advantage in mountain
terrain: they count double during the archery round of a
mountains ambush. Mountaineer leaders cannot be
ambushed.
Nation – Each of the various peoples assigned to players for the game.
Game play is mostly performed nation by nation.
Neutral – Vassals and clients of a nation are neutral with respect to each
other and their suzerain or patron or the latter’s allies and
their vassals and clients. A province is neutral (to a
nation’s units) if it is empty or controlled by a neutral
nation.
Noble Cavalry – A Kingdom’s heavy elite cavalry. XXXV CREDITS
Nomad – A special kind of Barbarian.
Palatine cavalry– A double-elite ( ) heavy cavalry unit. Game Design – Philippe Thibaut
Patron – A nation that has one or more clients. Development – Philippe Thibaut, Daniel U. Thibault
Phase – Each turn is broken down into four phases (Time, Artwork – Philippe Thibaut, Jose Cabrera (cover art) & Massi Del Bono
Administration, Military, Scoring), completed sequentially, (most counters)
which themselves consist of a sequence of steps. Editing – Ralph H. Anderson & Daniel U. Thibault
Province – The smallest geographical land subdivision, as opposed to a Graphic Design – Philippe Thibaut
sea zone. Land units are deployed to provinces. Layout – Philippe Thibaut, Daniel U. Thibault, & Ralph H. Anderson
Provinces without a built city are said to be rural. Marketing – Philippe Thibaut & James Eisert
Raiders – Units that pillage a Civilized rural province in order to gain Playtesting – Philippe Thibaut & many, many fellow players and friends
plunder. Production – Philippe Thibaut
Religion – In Invasions, there are five religions: Catholicism (☧),
Monophysitism (☧), Arianism (☧), Mazdaism (♨), and Many thanks to Daniel U. Thibault and Ralph H. Anderson, who did an
Paganism (☾). Religions give rise to heresies and can awesome job proofreading and reformatting the rules and player aids,
and to Michel Ouimet, who helped sharpen the rules (besides translating
make subduing a revolt harder.
them back into French). Without their precious help, this game would
Satrapes – Persian garrison infantries, which cannot operate outside of
have never reached this level of quality.
the Mesopotamia, Persis, and Persia Orientalis Areas.
Sea, Sea Zone – The smallest geographical water subdivision, as
Philippe Thibaut
opposed to a province. Fleets are deployed to sea
August 2019
zones.
Stack – A grouping of co-located units, limited in size by the province’s
terrain. During the Military Phase’s Nation Activations
step, stacks are moved one at a time and later conduct
battles.
Status, Nation Status – One of Barbarian, Kingdom, or Empire. As a
result of aging and size, status can transition from one to
the next.
Step – A subdivision of a phase. Each step must be completed before
the turn moves on to the next one. Some steps are
broken down into sub-steps.
Submission – A nation can be submitted by violence, becoming the
© 2019 Wisdom Owl
vassal of its suzerain.
Suzerain – A nation that has submitted another, its vassal. CONTACT
Themata (singular Thema) – Byzantine mobile combat units that replace
Limites on turn 8 (525 AD). The word actually designates E-mail us at : contact@wisdom-owl.com
the military and administrative divisions of the middle Or write to this address:
Byzantine Empire; the units would be their garrisons.
Tribute – A payment in Gold made by one nation to another, either in WISDOM OWL
return for a mercenary or as an obligation (of a client or C/O PHT CONSEIL
vassal to its patron or suzerain). 3, Allée des Frênes
Turn – The game is played in 11 or 12 turns in the basic scenario. 38240 Meylan
Unit, Military Unit – There are standard and elite units. They can be led France
by leaders and serve to conduct battles and establish
control.
Vassal – A nation that has submitted to its suzerain.
Zone – See Sea Zone.

38 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl

• Detailed Sequence of Play 3. Military Phase
• Nation Activation order: Begin with Barbarian nations, in order of A. Nation Activations – In Nation Activations order.
decreasing age (breaking ties in order of increasing initiative on the
A Barbarian nation may choose to raid instead of a normal activation.
Nation Cards), then similarly with Kingdom nations, and finally
Empire nations. To migrate, a horde must move together with all of the nation’s units.
No combat is allowed.
1. Time Phase
a. Unit Stacks (twice during invasion)
A. Status of Nations (VI) i. Movement (XVIII, XIX, XXV) – One stack at a time, in
a. Barbarian nations age – In Age Track sequence. player’s choice of sequence. Whenever a hostile province or
Voluntary or forced transitions to Kingdom may occur. sea zone is entered, the enemy may react (flee, or intercept
b. Kingdoms and then Empires age – As above. with multiple stacks—only one of which may be leader-less). •
Kingdoms may transition to Empire. Overrun if 6:1. • Passage in force if 2:1. • Strait crossing
c. Heresies age. consumes all movement, may be blockaded. • Naval
transport. • Amphibious landing. • Cities must be successfully
B. Reinforcements (IX) – In Nation Activation order †. besieged to complete province conquest. • Barbarian leader
Displacements may occur. • Barbarian vassals’ reinforcements are terror vs. non-fortified cities.
limited. • Intrinsic leaders are redeployed unless replaced by named
ii. Combat (XX) – In player’s choice of sequence. • Mountain
leaders (except Empires). • Previous turn’s named leaders are
ambush. • Retreat. • Sieges. • Loot conquered cities.
removed unless long-lived. • Eliminated federate and nomad vassal
mercenaries are replaced. • One auxiliary or mercenary of each b.Campaigns (XXII) – In player’s choice of leader sequence
disappeared nation is removed from each controller. • Inactive i. Movement
independent minor Kingdoms (IMKs) rebuild or restore one unit. ii. Combat
C. Events (X) B. End of Diplomacy – Discard unused Diplomacy cards (gain 1 for
a. Event Cards – One per player (Romans > Huns > Persians > each discard).
Goths). Public events are resolved immediately.
4. Scoring Phase (V) – As per Turn Track (every 3rd Turn)
b. Raids – In Time Table sequence.
Some nations may also score during their activation. Patrons: half VPs
c. Caravans ‡ – Simultaneous. Roll for exceptional caravan. for their clients’ territory. Federators: VPs for their Foedus territory.
Receive 1 per controlled caravan (5 for the exceptional Federates: VPs for their other territory. Suzerains: VPs for their
caravan). Barbarian controllers may loot their caravans. vassals’ territory. Vassals: half VPs.
D. Diplomacy (XXX) – Civilized nations, in order of increasing age, † May be done simultaneously if order does not matter.
starting with Kingdoms then Empires. Draw as many cards as the ‡ On turn 1, Caravans (1.C.c) and Administration (2) are skipped.
leader’s diplomatic bonus (+ 1 for Empires). • Diplomacy cards (except
Mercenary, Graft, and Nothing) can be played no later than the D2 checks (✓ pass, ✗fail)
beginning of the Military Phase activation of the earlier of the two • Time Phase, Events step, Caravans sub-step
nations involved.
✓ A Barbarian nation that controls a Caravan province loots it.
2. Administration Phase (Kingdoms and Empires only) (XIII) ‡ • Time Phase, Diplomacy step
A. Administration Cards (XIII.C) – In Nation Activations order, ✓ When used to a) force an alliance with a target nation controlled
Civilized nations only. Draw [2 + leader’s administration bonus] cards, by the same player as the card-playing nation, b) force the clientele
face-down. If they’re all of the same type, draw until there are two of an independent minor Kingdom, or c) break an existing alliance or
types. Choose one type set and pay for it (Bankruptcy may be clientele, the Alliance card succeeds.
triggerred). Examine the cards, then play one. Reshuffle for the next • Administration Phase, Purchases step (Rome and Byzantium)
nation.
✗ If In Decline, suffer a Usurper Calamity.
B. Income (XIV) – In Nation Activations order †. Cities earn 1 per • Administration Phase, Revolts Subdual step
level, a fixed ½ if looted. Kingdoms: revenue of controlled provinces
and their cities unless in revolt, 5 for the capital. Empires: 1 per
✗ When a single-unit stack is eliminated (by failing the subdual), its
controlled Area (2 if total control), revenue of controlled cities not in leader is eliminated.
revolt, 10 for the capital. Commerce: Add 1 per sea zone with a • Military Phase, Nation Activation step (start of)
controlled coastal city not in revolt (add Monopoly Value if controlling all ✓ A federate may denounce its Foedus (except on the turn
coastal cities and none are in revolt). Tributes: Gain 1 per vassal, immediately following its establishment).
up to 2 from each client.
✓ A nomadic suzerain’s vassal may rebel. ✗Lose 5 VP and a unit.
Expenses: Pay 1 to the suzerain, 3 to each federate, 1 per
province in revolt (3 if Revolt +), and 1 per Area under heresy. • Military Phase, Nation Activation step, Unit Stacks
Pay 5 if In Decline (10 if In Decline +). Kingdoms: Pay 1 ✓ (Movement) If the opponent does not control all coastal cities of
maintenance for each unit. the sea zone, a naval interception succeeds.
Recovery (Barbarians too): Remove any pillage markers from all of ✓ (Combat) An unsupported Limes eliminated after blocking an
the nation’s cities. Redeploy a conquered capital. Remove, in each enemy stack inflicts a hit on the enemy.
controlled Area, up to 2 pillage markers from empty city sites (never
more than once per Area). ✓ (Combat) Against an attacker who did not cross a ridge or river, a
Bankruptcy: Age the nation by 2 spaces. Increase its Decline level. mountains ambush succeeds.
Draw 1 Administration Card and apply the indicated calamity. ✗ (Combat) When a land stack is completely eliminated (before the
Kingdoms: Lose all unpaid units or half of the units, whichever is less. subsequent recovery), its leader is eliminated.
Empires: Check for collapse. ✓ (Combat) When a Barbarian leader besieges a non-fortified city,
C. Purchases (XV) – In Nation Activations order †. Empires may restore it surrenders.
(unflip) up to 2 elite units at half purchase cost. Discard Treasury over ✓ (Could also occur during Time Phase, Diplomacy step) When an
40 . If In Decline, Rome and Byzantium must check for a Usurper
alliance expires or is broken (by Foedus or submission), in shared
calamity.
provinces where numerically equal stacks are present, the younger
D. Revolts Subdual (XVI.F) – In Nation Activations order. nation retreats. ✗ : the older one.

© Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules 39

Forced Transition to Kingdom (VII.C) Revolt Subdual (XVI.F)
Time Phase, Status of Nations step Administration Phase, Revolts Subdual step
• Barbarian nation of age 5+ which has declined a voluntary transition. • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers: +1 per controlled unit present (whatever the type)
–1 for every 10 in the nation’s Treasury –1 if the Area is under heresy (or if the capital’s Area is under
+2 if the nation’s horde is in a Barbarian Area heresy and the revolting province is of the same religion)
• Result ≤ nation’s age: the nation immediately becomes a Kingdom. –1 national religion is different from the Area’s
• A leader provides as many re-rolls as its combat bonus.
Forced Transition to Empire (VIII.B) • City walls are ignored.
Time Phase, Status of Nations step • Result ≥ 9: The revolt is subdued.
• Kingdom controlling 3+ Areas (Barbarian Areas = ½—no rounding) • Result < 9: The revolt continues and the nation loses 1 unit of its
• Exception: No check on the turn the Kingdom is created. choice from among those present.
• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
+1 for a leader with a combat bonus ≥ 2 Land Interception Resolution (XIX.A)
+1 if In Decline (single side; +2 for doubled side) Military Phase, Nation Activations step, Unit Stacks Movement
+2 for each Civilized Area controlled beyond the first three • Opponent reaction, one leader-less stack and multiple led stacks.
+1 for each Barbarian Area controlled • A land connection through non-hostile territory must exist,
+3 if Roma or Constantinopolis are controlled maximum distance 3 provinces.
+1 for each client → Persian Player Aid: B • A stack that is under attack by the active nation cannot intercept.
• Result ≥ 8: the nation immediately becomes an Empire. • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
+? Combat bonus of the leader present, if any
Random Player Selection for Revolt Placement (XVI.B) +3 if the target province contains the opponent's capital
Time Phase, Events step or +2 if the opponent is an Empire
• Administration Phase, Administration Cards step (calamity) –1 if the land distance is 3 provinces
• Roll a D10: –2 for each ridge or strait crossed
• [1–3] Roman; [4–6] Persian; [7–8] Goth; [9–0] Hun –2 if crossing the Bosphorus (→ Byzantines: P Player Aid)
Random Civilized Area Selection (Empire only) (XVI.C) • Result ≥ 6: the interception succeeds.
• Roll a D10: Flight Resolution (XIX.B)
Western Map (D2 ✓): [1] Gallia M. [2] Illyria [3-4] Britannia Military Phase, Nation Activations step, Unit Stacks Movement
[5] Gallia S. [6] Italia [7-8] Africa [9–0] Hispania • Opponent reaction. Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
Eastern Map (D2 ✗): [1] Moesia [2] Asia [3] Cappadocia +? Combat bonus of fleeing stack’s leader, if present
[4] Graecia [5-6] Aegyptus [7-8] Oriens [9] Mesopotamia [0] Persis +3 the starting province has a fortified city
+3 the opponent has twice as many units
Raid Outcome (XI.E) –1 the opponent has less cavalry
Time Phase, Events step, Raids sub-step –2 if flight must start by crossing a river, ridge, or strait
• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers: • Result ≥ 9: the flight succeeds.
–1 per Civilized unit present in the target province and in any
province or sea zone passed through when raiding in depth Amphibious Landing Sea Risk Resolution (XXV.E)
+1 previous raid is Raid –; +2 if previous raid is Raid + Military Phase, Nation Activations step, Unit Stacks Movement
→ Result • Stack moving from a friendly coastal province into an enemy or
[≤4] Failure One raiding unit is lost permanently empty coastal province. Resolve before naval interception.
[5–6] Raid – Gain 1 and 1 VP, place a Raid – marker • Roll a D10 with the following modifiers:
[7–10] Raid + Draw a pillage marker, gain 3 VP, place a –2 unless the nation controls a city on the same coast as the
Raid + marker target province and coastal to the last sea zone crossed
[11–12] Raid + As [7–10] above and the raiding unit(s) +1 if landing on a Mediterranean or Pontus Euxinus coast
remain in the target province (Romans and Byzantines only)
• The Raid marker lasts just one turn. ±? Storm or Expert Navigation event
• A Raid + eliminates any Limes present. • Result ≥ 5: the landing succeeds, subject to naval intercept.

Exceptional Caravan (X.D) Siege Resolution (XXIV.C)

Time Phase, Events step, Caravans sub-step Military Phase, Nation Activations step, Unit Stacks Combat
• Roll a D10: • Roll a D10, re-roll per the leader’s combat bonus. Modifiers:
[1–2] Aegyptus [3–7] Rhagae [8–9] Siraces [0] Tripolitania +1 assault ordered: Besieger takes 2 hits to receive bonus
+1 Civilized besieger, or besieged is In Decline (+2 if double)
Empire Collapse (XIV.K) –1 Nomadic besieger (until turn 9) /
Administration Phase, Income step –? wall value (fortified city) –2 to –4 (–1 for Roma)
• Empire of age ≥ 9 which suffers bankruptcy. –1 non-fortified city (turns 4 and 5)
• Roll a D10 with the following modifiers: –1 coastal city with a city-friendly naval stack off-shore
+? each age above 9 (+1 age 10, +2 age 11, +3 age 12) (voided if an assault is ordered)
+1 if In Decline (single side; +2 if doubled side) • Result ≥ 7: the siege succeeds.
+1 per calamity suffered this turn
+2 if the capital was conquered on the previous turn Leader Assassination (XX.J)
–1 per Area controlled other than the capital’s Area Military Phase, Nation Activations step, Unit Stacks Combat
• Result ≥ 9: the Empire collapses and ceases to exist. • Empire In Decline, leader gains a victory (attacking or defending).
• On a D10 roll of 8+, the leader is assassinated (eliminated).
40 Invasions – Volume 1: 350-650 AD – Rules © Copyright 2019 Wisdom Owl